Remnants
by Valeria Kementari
Summary: What if the original Age of Apocalypse storyline had continued? This is one of its possible answers. Join Storm, Quicksilver, Exodus, Dazzler, Sunfire, Illyana Rasputin and Lila Cheney, sole survivors of Magneto's dream.
1. Chapter 1

**Episode 1: Salvation**

The worst had come to pass. The Eurasian Human Council deployed its last attack, the so-called Judgement Day had arrived. Hundreds of nuclear bombs fell over Manhattan, obliterating mutant and man alike in their wake. Destroying all Apocaylpse had built. And, as the bombs fell, one mutant raced against destiny. Pietro Lensherr's mutant power allowed him to run at velocities undreamt of by any man. And, as desperation begun to take over his heart, he ran faster than ever, with only one goal in mind. In his arms rested young Illyana Rasputin, on the brink of unconsciousness as she did her best to hold her breath, for it was impossible to breathe at the speed Quicksilver was running. It took him less than three minutes to reach his destination. The ruins of the Xavier Mansion stood before him, and five mutants stood there, waiting.  
"Ororo... quickly... the bombs..." was all Quicksilver could bring himself to say as he fell in her arms.  
Ororo Munroe, the mutant known as Storm, did the best she could to support the man she loved and the child in his arms. "Bombs?" She asked weakly, and then they heard it. Hundreds of explosions, coming from the south. New York City was dying, and the rest of America was next.  
"Lord... Lord Magneto..." said Exodus in shock, staring towards the city, feeling in his mind as his lord and saviour died. The others looked in that direction too, Lila Cheney was as surprised as Exodus, the others, however, reacted quite fast.  
"We won't be safe here!" Shouted Dazzler as panic began to overwhelm her.  
"Look alive! Teleport us away!" Shouted Sunfire as he grabbed Exodus' arms and shook him.  
The bombs' holocaust could be seen with the naked eye. It was coming ever closer. Nuclear mushroom clouds forming one on top of the other.  
"Paris!" shouted Dazzler, staring wildly at her lover, as Exodus kept his rigid state, looking south, not moving, not uttering a single word. And the bombs came closer, and the bombs fell. And a flash of light bathed their eyes, and they could see nor hear no longer. And then a bright white light was born, forming itself slowly in their temporary blindness.  
In a matter of seconds, which felt like eons, the light faded, and the darkness as well, and they regained their gift of sight and a distinct cry told them they were very much alive.  
"MERCIFUL GODDESS!" shouted Storm in awe. Her attention however, soon turned to the man and child in her arms. Pietro was fine, at least so it seemed, he was merely exhausted. The little girl, however, was not breathing.  
"You did it!" shouted Dazzler, not even thinking about restraining her joy at being alive. "You saved us!"  
"No, he didn't" said Sunfire with calmness in his voice, releasing Exodus at last.  
"I ... I did..." said Lila Cheney weakly in her shy voice.  
Notwithstanding, Storm could not hear the pointless banter of her allies. They were alive? Fine, the girl needed her help, it was inconsequential how they had survived. She laid Pietro on the grass as she gave a vague glance at her surroundings. They were in a valley of some sort, with nothing but grass and a couple of scattered trees and bushes, with mountains in the distance. She laid Illyana next to him and she begun to administer CPR to the young girl. Mercifully, the child soon coughed. She was still alive.  
"Thank Goddess..." Ororo smiled  
"Piotr?..." asked the young mutant weakly as she opened her eyes.  
"No..." whispered Storm, caressing her hair "... rest now child, try not to think..." Ororo did not know what had occurred in New York City, and she did not care much about it now. There was no more New York City, no more Magneto, no more Apocalypse. They had to mourn their losses and move on with their lives, taking advantage of this new opportunity they had been given.  
Separated by a short distance, the trio of mutants had finished their bantering and were examining the unmoving Exodus.  
"Is he all right?" asked Lila, watching the strangeness in Exodus' actions.  
Ororo stood up once Illyana was able to sit by herself, and she at last turned to see her teammates. "Where are we?" she said as she reinforced her previous glance, staring in all directions.   
"I... don't know exactly..." replied Lila Cheney. "I acted out of instinct more than anything... I saw the bombs coming and... I just... I wanted to be safe... I don't exactly know how my powers work, but it's clear I've teleported us." She tried to explain what she couldn't explain.  
And then madness erupted. "DEAD! LORD MAGNETO IS DEAD!" shouted Exodus suddenly. His eyes crackled with energy and insanity.  
Dazzler moved forward, trying to calm her beloved "Paris calm--" but he lashed out with a telekinetic blast, felling her with the force of his attack. He did not truly know what he was doing. As grief took over him, he unleashed his psionic power in full, levitating slowly, releasing the energy within, lashing out at everything and everyone in his path.  
"Stop!" shouted Sunfire, but his words fell on deft ears.  
"DEAD! THEY ARE ALL DEAD!" he shouted, not listening, not caring, consumed by his grief, his eyes lost as psionic energy poured from them. A sudden telekinetic blast struck Sunfire's chest before he could move closer as Lila avoided another blast.  
"Paris! For Goddess' sake stop!" asked Ororo in vain as she crouched next to Pietro's unmoving form to protect him.  
Exodus was clearly out of reach. His telekinetic bolts hit the ground, creating craters in the earth, as they roamed wildly all around them.  
"Please mister Exodus, sir... you're not the only one who's lost a loved one..." said the sweet calm voice of Illyana Rasputin, her eyes filled with tears, as she stared at the mad mutant before her with no fear.  
And Exodus' mind reached out to hers, and he felt her pain and calm. And slowly he begun to descend, and he forced himself to quell his madness, to stop his rampage, to restrain the vast psionic energies his mind possessed. And he returned to the ground and hugged Illyana as he crouched in front of her, without speaking.  
Sunfire stood up, his eyes filled with rage, but the rage dispersed when Dazzler touched his shoulder and urged him to calm down. As he saw Exodus and Illyana in unmoving embrace, he comprehended his teammate attack was moved by grief and he willed himself to forgive him.  
For a second they all remained silent, looking at each other. Exodus was the one to break the silence as he released Illyana and stood up straight. "How... how's Pietro?"  
"Unconscious ... merely exhausted I hope." replied Ororo standing up as well, leaving Pietro in the grass.  
"What will we do now?" asked Sunfire, turning to Lila.  
Lila Cheney stared at the sky. Two gigantic moons of bright blue/white light filled the night. It was clear they were no longer on Earth. "I... I don't know... I don't truly know how my powers work, only that they teleport me through interplanetary distances... we could be millions of light years away from Earth."  
"So, we're stuck here on alien planet?" said Alison Blaire, Dazzler.  
"I... I don't know how to bring us back to Earth." replied Lila, though her tone was weak, she did not hesitate.  
"It's way better than being dead. You have my thanks Ms. Cheney." said Sunfire trying to reassure her.  
Ororo looked at the mountains, hearing their words, and she realized what they needed. They lacked the drive to take a communal decision. They lacked what Magneto had often told her she had. Leadership potential. The words formed in her throath with astounding ease, and she spoke with her usual calmness. "It doesn't truly matter. We know not in what state Earth is. After the bombs... there might not be an Earth at all. We are alive, we are here, we need to stay alive. Our needs are many, but the first one is shelter. We are all tired, confused and a bit shocked. We will think better after some sleep, we will decide things in the morning, if there is a morning in this place."  
The others looked at her in silence, relieved there was a commanding person who knew what to do. For all their powers, they had always needed a guide, a leader. First they followed Magneto, and his squad leaders, Rogue or Quicksilver, or even Banshee, but, aside from Pietro, they were all dead now, and Pietro was unconscious. Ororo's words calmed their insecurities and they were ready to follow her orders.  
"Shiro, you fly ahead towards that mountain range. Try to find a cave where we can set up and rest. Paris, I will need your telekinesis to lift Pietro. Let's be quick, we don't know what sort of animal or aliens live here, or if they've already seen us."  
Sunfire's atomic flame increased itself as he begun to fly, and the japanese mutant soon reached his top speed, heading towards the mountain. His mind had yet to process what had just happened. Was it truly over? Could Apocalypse be at last defeated and dead? If so, his vengeance was at last fulfilled, the murder of his family and countrymen avenged. But after a lifetime of looking for revenge ... What would drive him now? He removed such thoughts of his mind and focused on the task at hand. He looked around, there were miles and miles of mountains in both directions. Towards the North he saw something that resembled a city, but he was unsure. Though he had great eyesight, a side-effect of his mutation, he could not truly determine if he was, in truth, watching a city. As he flew around the mountains he encountered a cave. Carefully he entered it, and, after a quick and thorough examination, he exclaimed "Perfect place". He left the cave for a second, gathering some dry wood from the mountain slope, and he used his fire-creating powers to ignite them. After a second of contemplating his work, he rushed to retrieve the others. It didn't take him long to find them, walking towards the mountains.  
"We got a place to spend the night... cozy little cave... follow me..." he smiled, never landing.  
Ororo watched the distance, the mountains were too far to go on foot. "It will be best if we flew there, my winds can carry Lila and Dazzler with ease..."  
Exodus crouched a bit and grabbed Illyana in his arms "I can telekinetically carry Pietro, and us..."  
"Let's go then, Shiro, lead the way." added Storm, her eyes flashing brightly white as she began to hover, levitating herself and the two women behind her.  
Sunfire's flame bursted brighter and he sped towards the mountain range. And so, the strange group, the remnants of Magneto's dream flew to the relative safety of the mountains, in the strange alien world.

Morning came swiftly, and the first to open his eyes was the mutant speedster known as Quicksilver. It took him a few seconds to gather his bearings. Near him he could see Exodus, sleeping soundly with Dazzler in one side and Illyana on the other. Close by where Sunfire and Lila Cheney. Shiro's flame continued to burn, even though he was fast asleep.  
"They made it..." he thought relieved. "We made it." His eyes looked around for his love, but there was no sign of Ororo Munroe, except a dense pea soup fog in the cave's entrance. Why were they on a cave? Where were they? Questions he would certainly ask when the others returned from their trip to Morpheus' land. Pietro did not want to interrupt said journey, so he tried not to make a sound as he slowly sat and tried to stand up. And then he realized it. His legs didn't hurt. He could remember a sharp pain, as he pushed himself well beyond his limits, trying to run away from the bombs. But now, there was no pain. There was nothing. He closed his eyes. "I must be really tired..." he thought, and tried again. There was no answer from his legs. What could it be? He tried again. His legs didn't move, his legs didn't feel, he couldn't feel them. It took him a couple of minutes to understand. He was not able to move his legs. Desperation began to take over him. He had not cried his father's death, he had not wept for his baby brother's demise. Yet, he couldn't help it now. Tears began forming in his eyes as he realized his legs were useless.  
And slowly, a light breeze came through the pea soup fog, and it magically dissipated, creating a small passage in its centre. And through the passage, lit by a white shimmering light behind her, Ororo Munroe entered the cave, carrying several fruits in a piece of cloth. She smiled as she saw him awake. However it didn't last. She saw the tears in his eyes, the awkward position of his legs, his hands caressing them, and she knew something was not right.  
"Pietro?" she said weakly, moving slightly closer.  
"My... my legs... Ororo... I can't feel my legs." he said, looking at her, his eyes about to burst in tears.  
"Goddess..." she murmured, dropping the fruits. At once she rushed to his side, crouching next to him. "Are you... how can... Oh Pietro..." she hugged him, doing her best not to weep as well.  
"No matter... no matter what I do... I feel nothing... I can't move them... they don't answer..." he said, though still a bit desperate he was much more calmer now, safe in her lover's arms.  
"It must be ... It's probably because you overextended yourself... you ran faster than your legs could handle..." she tried to reassure him, but she was finding it was a very difficult thing to do.  
Silence followed. As they remained hugging, a strange noise was heard outside. They parted slowly, wondering what made the noise. As Pietro cleaned his tears with his sleeve, a pebble entered the cave, crashing against a wall. Two soldiers emerged at the entrance. They carried guns and wore green and white costumes of a strange resemblance. Their most distinctive feature was their skin, as blue as the sky. There was no other indication of them being aliens other than their skin. They spoke in a weird language, never before heard by the couple, and they pointed their guns at them. The soldiers raised the level of their voices, still pointing their guns. The sleeping mutants stirred and Ororo was certain she could feel a soft humming coming from the guns. She did not hesitate. Her eyes turned white and a sudden gust of wind erupted from out of nowhere, crashing against the soldiers, removing them from the cave. And as they were evicted in such rude fashion, the roar of thunder broke outside. The noise was enough to raise a pack of elephants. It was more than enough to gather her fellow mutants' attention.  
"What the f--" said Dazzler opening her eyes wide.  
"We are under attack..." said Ororo with calm. "Lila, stay with Pietro and Illyana. Dazzler, I want you at the entrance. Sunfire, Exodus, you fly with me." She stood up and walked towards the entrance, showing confidence in each movement.  
It took a couple of seconds for the others to comprehend her words, her orders, but they understood in the end and they followed them with no skepticism.  
"Are you ok Pietro?" asked Lila.  
"No. But we might have bigger problems to worry about now than my health." he said, avoiding her eye.  
The trio of mutants flew outside the cave and what they saw was quite unexpected. Nearly two dozen soldiers stood in the slope, aiming their guns at them. The soldiers all wore green and white costumes, except one, whose costume was as blue as their skin. He clearly seemed in command. He stepped forward and spoke loudly in their alien language. It was clearly a threat of some sort.  
Once he finished Ororo spoke with a soothing tone, as if she was talking with a ferocious animal and was trying to placate him. "We do not speak your language. We mean you no harm. We do not want to fight you."  
"Human scum! I should have realized it." said the blue costumed alien in a weird accent. "Humans with strange powers... we've seen your kind before, to us not new. You will surrender and with us come. To prison straight and then to the Supremor. Descend now and accept your fate."  
"Like hell we will." said Exodus, however he was restrained to say more as Storm lifted her hand in front of him, and she spoke next.  
"We mean you no harm. We have done nothing against you. Why do you seek to imprison us?" she asked.  
"Human scum all the same. You allied with them first, then you gone, now you back? Sounds to me you allied with enemies again. We won't allow you to meddle again. The Kree will not allow you to roam wildly in this, our planet." said the Kree Captain, clearly not able to speak the English tongue as good as he thought he did.  
"Kree? They are Kree?" whispered Sunfire next to Exodus.  
"What the hell is a Kree?" responded Exodus smiling.  
"We won't be caged." said Storm simply, stopping their teammates banter.  
"Fine. You die here then." said the captain, firing at them with his laser gun.  
Storm avoided the ill-aimed blast with no effort, however the entire Kree squad followed their leader's initiative and fired upon them.  
"Shiro, take those ships at the bottom of the hill..." she said pointing at what seemed like freight ships, that hovered slightly from the floor. Both ships had heavy cannons and they were firing at them. As Storm spoke she used her winds to deflect most of the blasts. "Paris..."  
"No need to say it Ororo, I won't kill any of them... this isn't home..." he said, hurling himself towards the battle, using his telekinesis to shield himself and to dismantle guns as he flew downward.  
Acting as one, the trio of mutants began to retaliate, attacking the Kree soldier with lightning, fire and mind, rendering the soldiers unconscious upon the mountainside.  
Dazzler used her light-projection powers to conceal the cave's entrance, creating a hologram in its place.  
Young Illyana Rasputin looked at Dazzler, quite curious about what was going outside. However she was not allowed near the entrance.  
"Speak up Blaire... what's happening..." said Pietro harshly, from the ground.  
"They're fighting lots of blue-skinned soldiers. Seems they don't have any powers... they're so screwed against our guys ..." she said with glee.  
"No matter how far we run, we can't escape the fight..." mused Pietro.  
"I'm sorry... I didn't know where to ... I don't know where I brought us... forgive me..." said Lila out of a sudden.  
"I wasn't... god you're sensible, woman. I was not speaking about you." said Pietro clearly irritated.  
"You did a good thing bringing us here Lila. I'd rather be fighting blue-skinned dudes than being dead." said Dazzler, as she gave Pietro a defying look.  
As Shiro's flame rendered the last cannon obsolete, he realized the battle was over. It took the three mutants less than five minutes to bring an entire Kree battalion into unconsciousness.  
"Impressive. With the power at our disposal there is nothing we can't do." gloated Paris Bennet, Exodus.  
"Why do you think Rogue left us behind Storm? Why didn't she take us to New York with her?" asked Shiro Yoshida, Sunfire. "I've thought about that. If I know Rogue the way I know her... it was because she knew it was an impossible mission. She wanted us to remain behind... to continue if they succeeded, or to avenge them if they failed." she said as she landed next to her friends at the bottom of the mountain. "But now it's not the time to muse about that. These... Kree... there's got to be more of them. We do not know if they sent out an alarm or something of the sort."  
"You think this is their planet?" asked Sunfire, watching at a felled Kree's face.  
"Maybe, if so we might not be welcomed... we need to move out anyway, they know we're here." said Storm. Her eyes turned white and a gust of wind began to blow, lifting her slowly, when she found herself covered in red energy. She could barely move. "By the goddess!" she exclaimed. She realized her teammates were bound in the same fashion.  
"Do not move, for if you do the Crimson Bands of Cyttorakk will strengthen their grip!" said a commanding voice.  
As one the trio of mutants searched for the voice, but they could not see its source. Ororo used every ounce of her will to calm herself, the feeling of being trapped was almost unbearable, and she spoke in a clear and loud voice, as thunder roared in the already darkened skies. "Release us or you will face the wrath of the elements! Reveal yourself to us Kree!"  
"We..." said the voice, as a figure slowly begun to appear, hovering before Storm, "... are not Kree..."  
Storm watched the costumed stranger. He was a human, of that there was no doubt. A man in his mid-forties, he had deep blue eyes and a small goatee. He wore a long red cape with strange symbols on its edge, held by a bizarre jewel. Below it he wore a blue costume with a curious white symbol on it, and orange gloves. Soon she understood why he had said we' as five more costumed people appeared on the ground, surrounding her allies. A werecat woman with tiger stripes along her back and a long brown mane, a man with a blue costume with a bird symbol on his chest and a red cape, another woman whose yellow costume and blue mask gave her a feline look also, a man with a white cape and hood, who carried a shield and a sword, and a woman with long flowing black hair, her body completely covered in a red and yellow outfit.  
The strange man, hovering in front of Storm, spoke again. "I am lifting the spell of invisibility, revealing ourselves to us, for I have decided to give you the benefit of doubt. You fought the Kree. Tell me, are you agents of the Skrull?" he asked, his hands glowing as red as the bands that prevented the mutants from moving.  
"What the hell is a Skrull?" was Exodus' reply, wriggling his body, trying to escape the bands.  
The yellow-costumed girl giggled at his words, and Ororo spoke again. "My name is Storm, and my allies names are Exodus and Sunfire. We do not know who the Skrull are, we are not from this planet. We come from Earth. We come in peace." Her calmness was absolute.  
The strange man remained silent, looking in her eyes intently. And then, he spoke. "There is no lie in your eyes. You truly are from Earth..." he waved his hands and uttered a few strange words, and the Crimson Bands of Cyttorakk bound them no longer. "My name is Stephen Strange, with me are Tigra, Nighthawk, Hellcat, Taskmaster and Spider-Woman. We call ourselves Defenders, for that is what we do. We defend the lives of those humans here with us." As he spoke, his allies dropped their guard, leaving their attack positions.  
"I thank you for releasing us, Mister Strange" said Storm, as she and Strange remained hovering a few meters above their allies.  
"Doctor Strange... he's a doctor..." said Hellcat, the yellow-costumed woman. "How did you come here to Terra? Where's your ship?"  
"We have no ship. A friend of ours has teleportation powers, well interplanetary teleportation powers..." said Sunfire with a friendly tone.  
"Well, I speak for the Defenders and welco--" Doctor Strange began to extend his hand, but suddenly Tigra, the werecat woman, shouted "Wait doc! I've been smelling them... there was something awkward with them, and now I know! They're mutants!" she said.  
Their response was immediate. Nighthawk's eyes flashed with fury and he screamed "Mutants? Here!"  
They regained their attack stance as Strange asked "Is this true?"  
"Of course it is, we have nothing to hide. We are mutants." said Storm.  
"And damn proud of it." added Exodus.  
"MURDERERS!" shouted Nighthawk, throwing himself towards Exodus, tackling him with his weight. "Heralds of Apocalypse no doubt!"  
Sunfire began to hover, but Spider-Woman released some sort of web from her hands and it hit his eyes, lessening his eyesight as it glued itself to his face.  
"Is Apocalypse trying to further his empire? Is he over with Earth and he's out to conquer the universe now?" Asked Taskmaster as he used his shield to tackle Sunfire.  
"We are not heralds of Apocalypse!" said Storm, creating lightning to protect her fallen comrades. "Stop this! We do not wish to fight!"  
"Speak for yourself 'roro" said Exodus, his eyes crackling with energy.  
"NO." she spoke loudly. "We will not fight. Stand your ground Exodus." she looked at Strange again "We won't fight you."  
"Who are you? Why are you here?" asked Strange.  
"We are X-Men. The Human Council deployed a last attack at Apocalypse, destroying him and New York City in the process. Apocalypse is dead." said Storm.  
Hellcat placed a hand in her mouth, surprised at her words.  
"I never heard of any X-Men" said the Taskmaster, sheathing his sword.  
"We were with the Resistance, working against Apocalypse." said Sunfire, as he at last removed Spider-Woman's web from his face.  
"We followed Magneto's dream of coexistence... though it's not easy trying to coexist with people who attack you at the mere mention of your birthright" added Exodus with clear sarcasm in his voice.  
"I knew Magneto, a long time ago. I offer apologies for Nighthawk's rashness..." said Strange, extending his hand at Storm, who did not hesitate and shook it. "An alliance between our teams is a natural one."  
As if they had been hearing Strange's words, the Kree stirred, and some began to raise. And as they did, the gathered heroes heard a cannon, and saw, in the distance, another Kree battalion heading their way. "The Kree are coming." said Spider-Woman.  
"And we will meet them in battle" said Strange, lifting his hands.  
"Together." added Storm, clenching her fist  
"Together" repeated Strange.  
And the X-Men and the Defenders turned to face their foes, as the Kree soldiers came ever closer...

Episode 2: Decisions


	2. Chapter 2

**Episode 2: Decisions**

Constant war had more casualties than the loss of human life. Culture was almost destroyed as survival took precedence. Long ago things like reading a book or reciting poetry had been forgotten. Television, entertainment, had been all but erased from humanity's mind. There was no room for culture in a world where only the fit survived. Reading novels and Shakespeare, an example among many, was not what the self- proclaimed fit did, nor what they thought was necessary. Free of Apocalypse's madness, the people of Terra had slowly begun to restore culture. Among them, several people dedicated to rewrite classic books, to recreate chords and classic music, to bring back all that was lost. A special group of youngsters did their best to perpetuate the gift of popular music, their performances being daily, and the favourite of the hidden humans of Terra. As these young musicians began their daily show, using their self-made instruments, a new, borrowed voice sang. Alison Blaire took the microphone in her hands as she approached centre stage. All eyes were on her as she allowed her voice to follow the music. With each note she sang with more confidence, with more passion. And the crowd encouraged her. Her lifelong dream, almost crushed by Apocalypse's mantra, was at last coming true. There was nothing she'd rather do than sing. She allowed her heart to lead her voice, her passion to overwhelm her, and she poured every bit of strength she had into making this performance unforgettable to her audience.  
Amidst the audience, a young man sat, his eyes fixed on the stage, on the beautiful woman and the impressive light show that accompanied her. Paris Bennet, Exodus, allowed his mind to wander as the song unfolded before him. An entire week had passed since their arrival on Terra. An entire week of relaxing and learning about their fellow humans' escape from madness, escape from Apocalypse. However, Paris did his best not to think about Earth, or the events that brought them here. The mere mention or remembrance of Lord Magneto was enough for his senses to boil, for his heart to feel the pain. Magneto was not his father, but it was the next best thing. Lord Magneto had rescued him from the Madri, and given him purpose and a life, when he could remember none. Somehow, the Madri, Apocalypse's priests, had erased all his memories, and had created the infernal device, which kept his powers in check, blocking his telepathy and conditioning his telekinesis. Magneto helped him regain a semblance of control, Magneto gave him a place in his X-Men, Magneto was everything to him. And news of his death had been to much for young Paris. However, he forced himself to maintain the rage at bay, to maintain the demon within him. Not truly because he cared about him, but because he was afraid he might hurt his allies. He forced himself to remain in control in order to keep the X-Men safe, and because it was what Lord Magneto would want. Lord Magneto wanted Exodus to have a normal life, he did not want him to become a raving lunatic. That thought, and the regular support of his friends, was all that sustained him, that kept him calm. But he feared what would happen if he just gave in to the demon inside, if he released the beast within. He cleared his mind of such thoughts as he recognized the last chords of the song, and his eyes returned from the light show to the singer, who sang those last notes with all her heart.  
And as she finished her first song, she allowed her mind to control her body once more, and she heard the cheering of the crowd, their claiming for a reprise. And Alison Blaire, the Dazzler, smiled. She turned to see the musicians, who were also astounded by the public's reply, and gave them a couple of instructions. She turned to see the audience again, grasping the mic in her hands, carefully caressing it. And she spoke clearly and soothingly.  
"This one is a bit old, but I bet you all remember it... feel free to join if you want to..." As she finished her words, the musicians began, and soon she was singing.  
"The moment I wake up...  
Before I put on my makeup...  
I say a little prayer for you...  
While combing my hair now...  
And wondering what dress to wear now...  
I say a little prayer for you...  
Forever and ever,  
you'll stay in my heart and I will love you,  
Together forever,  
that's how it'll be.  
To be without you,  
will only mean heartbreak for me..."  
And as she sang, her eyes were fixed on one man, a man who watched her with the same passion she looked at him. His eyes never leaving hers, undistracted by the light show she was making with her powers, side by side with her song.  
The woman known as Lila Cheney could not stand the music. It hurt too much. A million years ago, for that is how it felt, she had been a singer, a rock star. However that life was crushed, first by Apocalypse, and then by Remy's death. The death of the love of her life had hit her hard. The main reason she could not withstand music was he used to call her his little songbird. Every note reminded her of him, of her life in the streets, foraging for food and medicine to give to the needy. Modern day Robin Hoods in a world gone mad. It hurt to much to think about those days. Desperately trying to get away from the music, Lila walked right to the entrance of the cave system where the humans resided. The guards did not want her to leave. It was dangerous outside. No one wanted to go to the surface. She insisted and soon they allowed her to exit. As she did she noticed the air outside was not fresher as she had expected. Somehow it felt even better inside the caves. It didn't stop her though. He begun to walk uphill, searching the skies. Could Ororo be out here somewhere? Lila knew Ororo did not like being inside the caves for long, and she often escaped to the surface. She needed to talk with Storm. She was the only one whom she could truly call friend. As her eyes searched the mountainside for the windrider, she saw a rather unexpected sight. Shiro Yoshida, Sunfire, sat on the grass, in an obvious meditation pose. To Lila's surprise, Sunfire's flame was not burning, his body was not covered in flames. It was a first. Since she had known him he had always been burdened with constant flame erupting from his skin. This time it seemed he had finally learnt how to control it. She felt happy for him. Her first thought was to greet him, but she feared it would disrupt his concentration, so she slowly walked away instead.  
Shiro's mind wandered once again. Even though Terra was at war, he had not found such calmness and tranquillity in ages. Apparently, the alien factions that laid claim to the planet's ownership, the Kree and the Skrull, were content in fighting each other, and, after their initial attack, did not much care about the humans. It was as if they believed the gathered humans were inconsequential in every conceivable way. It had been a week since their arrival, a week of calmness and meditation for Shiro. And through meditation, and the calming thought of Apocalypse's demise, Sunfire was able to control his powers at last. No longer his skin burned always, no longer did he have that rage that kept his fire blazing. He was a new man. He had been reborn. And he wasn't going to waste this new opportunity like before. He was going to enjoy life, not go through it like a madman seeking revenge. Shiro exhaled, content with his new way of thinking, content in allowing his senses to rest. And then it happened. Some sort of net fell on top of him, covering his entire body. Disconcerted he opened his eyes, and wondered what was going on. A hoarse voice could be heard nearby. The voice said just one word "Now" and Shiro felt his world going mad as thousands of spikes attacked him. He was long unconscious before he realized they were not spikes, but electricity, flowing from the net to his body, straight to his nervous system, incapacitating him. Ironically, his flames could have saved him from the net if they had been on their previous perpetual state of burning.  
Three green aliens dressed in purple costumes moved towards him. An elder one spoke in the same hoarse voice as before.  
"Good job weaklings. Take him to the camp and keep him sedated." as he spoke, the alien's face and body changed. "I will take his place." It was a matter of seconds before the alien was a perfect copy of Sunfire. Another alien handled him a facsimile of Sunfire's costume.  
"Your highness... here it is, just strike this switch to turn it on, be careful not to allow them to see you do that." explained the technician.  
The alien resembling Sunfire put it on, and as he did he lifted the technician by grabbing his neck. "Fool. You think I'm stupid enough to discover my own charade? I am a Skrull! A member of the High Command! Never again dare to tell me how to infiltrate a bunch of worthless beings such as these!" he said, throwing the technician, who fell on his back against a tree. "Next time I won't be so merciful." said the High Skrull as he walked downhill, towards the entrance to the human caves.  
"I wonder where she gets all that strength from..." wondered Pietro Lensherr out loud, sitting on a wheelchair, looking at young Illyana Rasputin as she played with some local children in one of the underground plazas. Illyana laughed and played, while Quicksilver and Storm watched over her. She had not a care in the world, or so it seemed.  
"From the same place Shiro found his peace of mind, beloved, from Freedom. Shiro is free from his thirst for revenge... Illyana is free from imprisonment. At last we're all free of Apocalypse's madness." said Ororo Munroe in her usual calm tone.  
"We paid the highest price to be free of him and his stupid way of life. I will never forget it." replied Pietro.  
"It would be a very foolish thing to do so... but we cannot let our minds linger on the pain, we have to deal with it and move on..."  
An awkward silence followed. The events of the past week had changed their relationship significantly. Especially since Dr Strange told Pietro he may never walk again. He had put his legs under a lot of stress.  
"We have to go back." said Pietro at last. "We need to build a memorial for my father and his X-Men...we need to assess the situation, help peo--" but Ororo placed her hand above his mouth, silencing him.  
"We will, but for now we depend upon the Defenders' resources. Lila cannot take us back for now." she explained  
"I know all of this already." he said, removing her hand. "I'm just saying it again. Maybe we should grab Lila and shake some sense into her. She has the power, she just lacks the will."  
"We cannot force her to use the power if she's afraid of it, which she is, you knew that?" Ororo said, her tone loosing her usual calmness.  
"Yes. And it's stupid. How could she be afraid of her own mutant power, it's a part of her, it's essential. She'd really miss it if she lost it. She's just stupid to believe her powers would harm her." He said, looking at nowhere, talking rather fast.  
"Oh Pietro..." said Ororo, comprehending how hurt he was at the loss of his legs. She placed an arm around him, ready to hug him and comfort him but the appearance of Strange's astral image in front of them distracted her.  
"Storm, Quicksilver, I hope I am not interrupting." said Strange in his eerie, hollow voice.  
Pietro hurried and answered before Ororo could open her mouth. "Not at all doctor. What do you want?" he did not care for the harshness of his tone.  
"He is ready to see you at last. He apologizes for not doing it before." he spoke in a tone more ominous than usual.  
"At last" said Pietro grabbing his wheelchair's wheels, ready to follow, however, Strange lifted his right hand, gathering his attention as he stopped him.  
"He said he will speak with Storm first. Alone. I ... am sorry Quicksilver." said Strange.  
Ororo turned to see Pietro, a bit astounded at Strange's words, but he avoided her eyes and the former speedster spoke, wheeling his chair nonetheless "Fine, go, I'll watch Illyana." and he moved closer to the young girl, leaving Ororo alone with Strange's astral form.  
After a second of silence, Strange spoke. "I will create a trail of light for you to follow, Storm. It will be visible to you and you alone." Strange spoke and his astral self vanished, leaving behind a small thread of light, which led her to the nearest tunnel. Ororo gave on last glance towards Pietro, who refused to look her way, and she followed the light.  
As she walked, she could not stop from watching the humans staring at her. Most of them were afraid of mutants, and looked at them with scorn and reject, while others simply pretended they weren't there. She could feel their mumbling, their repressed hatred. She did not care. Let them fear her, let them hate her, she would not change her way of thought. She would still fight to defend them from madmen like Apocalypse, or the aliens that roamed free on this planet. She continued to follow the light thread, sinking deeper and deeper into the mountains. She could feel her claustrophobia rising within. She forced herself to keep it in check. Each step became more difficult than the last. Each step demanded a great deal of concentration, of incredible strength. And yet, despise her fear of being trapped, she still walked on, moving forward as instructed. The bead of light led her to a gigantic set of mechanic doors ending the longest tunnel she had ever walked on. As she reached the doors, they opened with a faint hum. Slowly but with no hesitation, Ororo stepped through them. She did not see what she expected. Somehow she had left the primitive caves to arrive at a futuristic room. She did not know how it was possible. If they had the power to create such rooms, why was the rest of the cave system still so primitive... so barren? She did not know the answer. She hoped she would receive it from the man sitting in a high chair at the end of the room. Ororo walked forward, not looking at the computers around the room, the noise of technology filling her senses. And she arrived in front of the man, who moved his hand and a chair appeared from the floor, and Ororo sat as per his instructions.  
"I bid you welcome, Ororo of the X-Men. I am the High Evolutionary, leader of the humans of Terra." said the man, who were a long purple robe and a matching helmet, his face obscured by a face mask of still the same colour.  
Ororo did not know how to reply, so she merely nodded. The High Evolutionary caught her eye and stood up, his chair sinking into the floor as he did and the lights dimming while a screen appeared behind him as he began to talk.  
"Fifteen years ago, the Mystic Muster, a group of sorcerers led by Doctor Strange, perceived the carnage that was imminent upon our world." As he spoke, Ororo was able to see images of a young Strange, surrounded by a group of witches and wizards of various ages. "Our first plan was to oppose Apocalypse, we created a team of super-heroes, devoted men and women with strong powers and stronger hearts. However, our plans were thwarted as Apocalypse captured and tortured our most powerful member, Captain Britain." Ororo saw the image of Captain Britain in the screen, he was a good looking man, though his upper face was covered by a mask, and he had a very fit body. "Knowing it would be impossible to defeat Apocalypse with the power at our disposal without destroying Earth, we decided to flee. We created a religious movement, The Church of Evolution, and I posed as a God among men. Thanks to magickal persuasion, it didn't take long for the Church to receive its firsts acolytes. Soon, they brought their relatives, their friends, and they did it as well, ad infinitum. When we reached the sum of one hundred thousand humans, we boarded a ship, a vessel created by my technology and reinforced by the Mystic Muster's magicks, these are the remains of that vessel..." he said, lifting his hands and showing the room. The screen, however, showed an image of the ship intact, as it flew out of Earth. "We fled our world, looking for a place where peace would reign. Near the Sun, we found a stargate, we do not know yet who placed it there, or why. Nonetheless we crossed through it. After drifting in space for months, Strange sensed this planet, on the fringes of the Andromeda Galaxy." Storm could now see the planet on the screen. "We arrived here. Though it had oxygen and water, it was a desolate land, with barely no vegetation or fauna. I used my gifts, the powers that led people to believe I was a god, and created both. I made the world inhabitable for our people. We did not waste time. Together, with magick and technology yet again, we forged a city, a city of magnificent beauty, and we dubbed this world Terra, in honour of our beloved Earth. For seven years, we lived in peace, our numbers slowly rising, our hopes rising. But it was not meant to be. Our luck had run out." The High Evolutionary paused and as he did, an image of a green-skinned alien Ororo had not seen before appeared on the screen. "The Skrull arrived first. They vowed this planet was within the borders of their Empire. That it belonged to them, and they forced us to pay tribute in order to remain here. We did not agree at first, but after their threats we decided to pay. All we had were crops and animals, and we paid with them, I was always able to grow our crops with ease. Soon, the Skrull began staying here longer than expected, claiming they enjoyed our company and way of life. We accepted them foolishly, welcomed their friendship rather than their tyranny. It was a fatal mistake. The Skrull were, are, at war with a race called the Kree." Ororo recognized the Kree on the screen as the High Evolutionary continued his storytelling. "The Kree came after the Skrulls, claiming this planet was theirs. They slaughtered the Skrulls living among us, they declared we were allies of the Skrulls and enemies of the Imperium. As such they deployed their forces against us. Thousands died during their raids. The Defenders fought back, but the forces of the Kree were overwhelming. Some of our numbers died, Baron Mordo, Moon Knight, Armadillo, Batroc, Mockingbird, El Aguila, Diamondback ... noble men and women who gave their lives for our survival. And then the Skrulls returned, vowing revenge for their dead. And so the Kree and the Skrulls battled each other and we were forced to flee yet again. Our vessel had been almost completely destroyed in one of the earliest attacks, but we managed to salvage its core, and, with Strange and the Mystic Muster's aid, we merged it with the mountains, hid it deep, and we connected the complex caves within, creating this system where we dwell. Our home. It's been a year since. A year since we've lived in the shadows, away from the sun, not even in our world. We fled Earth to avoid war, and war followed us. It is as Madame Web predicted, you cannot escape the workings of time." For a second the High Evolutionary looked weak, tired, and so very old, he sighed, regaining his strength, as the lights came back on and his chair rose from the floor. He sat once more and spoke. "It is all about to change. The Kree sensed your coming, and so did the Skrull.  
There was a massive discharge of psionic energies upon your arrival, I believe it was the work of the one called Exodus. Those energies, that power... was off the charts. Both the Kree and the Skrull covet that power. The Kree made the first move, but you stopped them, another reason for them to want you all." He said, but before he could continue, Ororo spoke.  
"If you want us to leave your caves, in order to protect your people, I will understand it, you have already given us much more than we could have ever expected--" this time, he interrupted her by lifting his hand.  
"You misunderstood me, Ms Munroe. I do not want you to leave. This is an opportunity. For too long we've remained in the shadows. It is time to strike back. What I'm asking for is your cooperation. I want your X-Men aiding my Defenders. Together, we can remove the Kree and the Skrull from this planet."  
Ororo did not think, she did not hesitate, she knew what she had to answer. "You have our help, you did not need to ask. Whenever you feel ready we will aid you, we will fight for you even unto our deaths."  
"Let us hope it will not come to that." He smiled. "I see in your eyes the same fire I saw on Magneto's twenty years ago... his flesh might be gone, but his spirit lives in you, and in your fellow X-Men's. You are his heirs, his children. I know you will not disappoint me."  
Lila Cheney walked through the caves once more, making her best to stay away from where Dazzler was giving her show. She had a vague idea to return to her quarters, maybe she'd find Storm there, or someone to talk to. She passed through the market, through the farms, through the underground lake. It amazed her how the humans had accustomed themselves to living below the mountains. She wondered if living in such places would have an effect on their children. Her mind also remembered the dwarves, characters of a long-forgotten novel, who lived in caves much like these ones, though they did it for the love of mining, instead of the fear that drove these humans here. As she walked towards the nearest exit tunnel, which led to the main plaza and away from the lake area where she was, her eyes caught a weird scene. A man, in his mid- thirties at the very least, sitting on a wheelchair. It was not the man's appearance that impressed her, but his eyes. He had deep black eyes, and she lost herself in them. The man seemed autistic, or catatonic, or maybe even vegetative, for he sat there, not moving, not doing anything, not looking at anything. A woman sat next to him, on a bench, reading a book. She had long blonde hair, although its lower half was of a deep purple colour, same as her eyes. She stared at the man and woman for a second, and then he screamed, quite loudly.  
"Starchilde! Come Come! Take us home can't you? Bring us back you can! Why make us stay here?" he looked directly at Lila's eyes as he spoke.  
"Never mind him, he's not...well, you know?" said the blonde woman dismissively, barely looking at her through the top of her book, forcing a smile.  
Lila did not smile. She felt quite freaked out. She resumed her walk, each step faster than the last, and she turned one last time as she reached the exit tunnel. The man was still looking at her, he sat in his chair, his face turned to see her. She could feel his eyes fixated on hers. Scared, Lila began to run away, failing to see the woman's stare in her direction as well.  
"Loved it. I simply loved it." said Exodus entering Dazzler's dressing room.  
"Of course you did hon, I'm a freaking diva." replied Dazzler, turning around, giving him her back. "Help me unzip..." she said, slowly turning her head to see him "won't you doll?"  
Paris Bennet smiled, moving closer, unzipping the back of her costume, and then turning her around and sinking his lips into hers. After what seemed like hours they broke free of their embrace. Silence followed, and seconds later they kissed again.  
A few hours later, the Remnants of Magneto's X-Men assembled in their quarters, a set of personal caves built for their personal use. It had been amazing to witness Dr Strange's work, as he used magick to make the dirt crumble and take the shape he wanted. The quarters were like a house, with rooms for everyone, a living room, a dining room, a kitchen and a couple of bathrooms. Though it was underground it was still far better than what they were used to.  
"So... you spoke with their leader..." said Pietro looking at Storm.  
"Yes. He asked me for our help, he needs our power to rid the planet of the alien menaces above." She said, looking at the others, who were all sitting around a table.  
"And who died and made you boss?" Asked Exodus standing up suddenly. "Who said you could speak for all of us? Why didn't you ask us first?"  
"I allowed Ororo to act as leader. My legs are practically destroyed, due to the excessive use of my powers. As the son of Magneto I chose Ororo as our leader. If she has decided to help the humans so we will." He said in a final tone.  
"Fine, we'll help them, I have no problem with it... but we won't do it tonight, and I'm kinda tired. See ya all in the morning." Said Dazzler, rising from her chair and heading to her room. Exodus followed her mumbling a soft "Good night." as he left.  
"I support your decision Storm. As such I agree with her, let's go to bed." Sunfire said, leaving as well. Illyana's eyes were fixed on him, perhaps the child was astounded to see him without burning flames all over his body, at least that's what Pietro thought.  
"Well, you can't fight majority... I'm off to bed as well. Good night." Lila smiled, joining the departees.  
Illyana kissed Pietro's cheek and then Storm's and she rushed towards her room, waving goodbye.  
Silence fell over them again. Neither Ororo nor Pietro spoke. After a few unbearable seconds of staring at nothing, Ororo said softly.  
"Thank you for defending me."  
"You need not thank me, Ororo. It is the truth. We didn't do it officially before, but it is so now. You are our leader, and it is how it should be." He began to wheel his chair to the rooms' tunnel, "After all, a cripple can't lead a hero team..."  
Ororo looked as he departed in silence. She sighed, asking the goddess for strength, and she went to her room, alone.  
Not too far from there, the woman with blonde and purple hair tucked the man in his bed. As she did she softly kissed his forehead.  
"You... you won't leave me alone, will you sister?" he asked, his face much like a frightened child's.  
"Of course not Jamie... I'll never leave you." she smiled, sitting on his bed next to him. "Now sleep, it is late and you had far too much excitement today ... just close your eyes and I'll help you..."  
And as her older brother closed her eyes, young Elisabeth Braddock reached with her mutant power of telepathy, touching his mind slightly, avoiding the blocks she had so carefully placed to protect him from the horrors behind them, and she helped him to fall sleep. It didn't take long. She was used to it by now. For the last twelve years she had been doing it. She returned from the Astral Plane rather quickly, afraid of being discovered by Strange on one of his journeys, and she rose from the bed and walked towards hers, thinking about the woman that crossed their path, and the rumours of new mutants in their midst...

Episode 3: Day of the Defenders


	3. Chapter 3

**Episode Three: Day of the Defenders**

Nestled deep within the cold confines of Antartica, there stood a hidden land, a land of most unique nature. This savage Land was not cold, like the rest of the mighty white continent. Instead it had a tropical weather, and it was covered by a dense jungle. How the Land came to be, no one truly knew. It had been that way for ages. Near the Land's rim, in a comparatively short space, there stood a village. A village created by the efforts of both human and mutants. A week ago, the village, deemed Avalon by its inhabitants, had received a most crippling blow. Apocalypse found the village, and its people, who foolishly thought they could hide from his madness. His retribution was swift. His Pale Riders arrived, killing tenths of people, both mutant and human alike. And, as reconstruction began slowly, a small group of humans gathered in the protective darkness of the jungle. An awkward silence followed as the five gathered humans arrived. One of them, a man in his mid-thirties of deep brown eyes and matching hair, spoke in a calm tone. "If you are all here it means you all agree with my views. The muties are dangerous. This is not what we signed for when we arrived. Destiny was in charge, and the old broad knew how to protect us, but in the end she failed, and we lost. No one's saying it, but there were more human deaths than mutant ones... And to top if all one of them Pale Riders is now supposed to be our guide? Our leader? I say not."  
An african-american woman of long braided hair spoke. "And what do you propose to do Graydon? Certainly we cannot fight them... we don't have the power... especially with that Juggernaut on their side..."  
Graydon Creed smiled. "We need not fight. That is not what I intend to do. I have contacts you see... contacts with the outside world... I know by good sources that the Human Council is being rebuilt, and this time they will show zero mercy to mutants..."  
"Some of these mutants aren't bad, Graydon, they are friends..." said the woman with braided hair.  
"You're too good Charlotte... or do you forget your boy Timmy died because of the Shadow King's attack?" said another black woman.  
"I don't forget Stevie, but still..." said Charlotte Jones with sadness on her face.  
"The plan is simple. We gather all the humans, we get them on our side, and we leave the place. As we do, we warn the Council." continued Creed.  
"And then what?" asked a blonde man.  
"Simply my dear Mr Hodge... they send their Sentinels to wipe them clean. I'm told they're building stronger Sentinels, able to kill muties far faster than the other ones..."  
"So, we betray those who gave us shelter in our time of need because some mad mutants came and attacked us?" said the youngest of them, a kid with long brown hair.  
"Jones, you're too young, still you should know by now. The only good mutie, is a dead mutie..." said Creed with a final tone. "I'm just saying think about it. We gather all humans and we leave. My contact can get us a transport, once we're gone... who cares what happens to them muties?"  
"You gotta give us time to think. Some of those muties are my friends." added Charlotte Jones.  
"Just promise me you won't say a word to any of them." asked Creed.  
"Of course. Human matters should remain to humans... but you promise me you won't go ahead with your plan unless you have all of our votes..." she replied.  
"Deal." said Creed as he grinned. "Let's go now before someone finds us... let this be the end of the first meeting of the Friends of Humanity..."  
And as silently as they gathered, the group of humans dispersed, returning to the calmness of Avalon.

The planet was unnamed and it stood deep within a space zone to which two alien races held claim. Both the Kree and the Skrull claimed the planet as part of their empires, and both were more than happy to annihilate the other for sole possession of it. Hidden deep within a mountain range, there stood a complex system of caves, home of the humans who had fled from Apocalypse's mad rule of Earth. And inside those caves, inside a chamber of most fantastic technology, a gathering of heroes took place. Two teams of superpowered beings sat around a big round table, much like King Arthur's fabled one. Presiding the meeting was the High Evolutionary, Sir Herbert Whyndham, proudly beaming upon them. An elder woman, sitting next to the High Evolutionary cleared her throat, stopping the mumbling and gathering their attention.  
"The Dynamic Defenders..." said Dr Strange, presenting his team. "Hellcat, Nighthawk, Tigra, Taskmaster, Spider-Woman and I, Doctor Strange." The High Evolutionary nodded and looked at Storm, who did the same "The X-Men, Lila Cheney, Exodus, Dazzler, Sunfire, Quicksilver and I, Storm."  
"Hem " Illyana cleared her throat, next to Pietro's wheelchair. Hellcat giggled as she saw the young mutant's face. She acted as if her pride had been wounded.  
"And Illyana Rasputin..." said Storm, smiling at last. Illyana beamed proudly.  
"For those who are not still acquainted with my person, I am the High Evolutionary, and this is Agatha Harkness, one of my most trusted advisers. You all know the situation. We are caught in a war not of our making. The Kree and the Skrull dispute this planet for themselves, and they wage war on our footstep. They are aware of the power we possess and they seek it. Soon we will find them invading our caves, raiding our city, killing our less fortunate followers, who do not have powers to defend themselves."  
"Antonio had powers and they didn't help him..." muttered Hellcat with a sad look on her face.  
"Shh..." replied Nighthawk. "We all miss Armadillo... and all of who died in the Kree's attack, but now it's not the time for this..." he whispered as low as he could.  
"I would have traced a course of action, but, regrettably our information is scarce. We know next to nothing about this beings, save the Skrull have shape-shifting powers." As the High Evolutionary spoke, Sunfire moved in his seat slightly. "As such, Agatha and I have decided to separate the teams in two, and send you to the Kree and Skrull camps to gather as much info as you can. It will be a sneak mission, you must avoid contact at all costs. Go, spy, return with information."  
Agatha Harkness stood up, as she did she raised her arms and her eyes went white. She began to repeat words unheard of in ages, an incantation designed for a single purpose, to see through the earth, to see their foes. "Tiron athra ennor... tiron athra ennor.." she repeated. Two gigantic images appeared behind her.  
"Better than satellite TV..." murmured Exodus. Dazzler giggled at his commentary.  
The first image showed the Kree, living in the city built by the humans. Agatha Harkness stood before it and spoke clearly, her voice sounded old and withered, yet still powerful and proud. "The Kree. Perhaps our most vicious enemies. Under the command of Captain Tar-Vash, the Kree almost decimated us. As such, the most powered and experienced among us should go and spy on them. Dr Strange, Storm, Sunfire, Hellcat and the Taskmaster will head there." she moved slowly and with grace and stood before the next image. A camp with several tents and ships surrounding them, "On the other side of the mountain range, southbound, separated from the Kree by one thousand miles, there stands the Skrull campsite. At first they were ruthless, but we gained their trust and alliance. However most of the Skrulls we befriended perished. It is unlikely any survived, but it will be imperative to learn if an alliance can be forged. Nighthawk, Exodus, Tigra, Dazzler and Spider-woman should head to this destination."  
Lila Cheney was surprised not to hear her name in any of the teams, but she did not say a word. The High Evolutionary stood up "Prepare to leave at once. Our hearts are with you."  
As one, the heroes stood up and began to move towards the door, but then, Hellcat turned to see the High Evolutionary and said "Hey... you promised you'd say it... please... can you say it?"  
The X-Men looked puzzled at her childlike plea, and the High Evolutionary lowered his head, placing his hand above his eyes, slightly negating with his head.  
"Please... it'll give us luck... just say it..." continued Hellcat, unwilling to leave the table.  
"Say it father and be done with it." said Spider-Woman trying not to laugh.  
"Sigh... very well... May the Force be with you..." the High Evolutionary added resigned.  
The response was immediate, they all laughed and Hellcat lifter her head proudly "Now we can go..." and the heroes left in a hurry. Storm shot a last glance at Pietro, but once more he negated eye contact to her.  
"I am surrounded by children..." mumbled the High Evolutionary as he saw the others leave.  
"Hem !" repeated Illyana, rather offended.  
Agatha smiled and approached her leader "You know Patsy Walker, she is a child at heart." slowly she turned to see Pietro. "Mr Lensherr... is it alright if I take young Ms Rasputin with me? I sense a great potential for magick wielding within her and I'd like to test it. I promise you no harm will befall to the youngster."  
"I... I don't know..." said Pietro.  
"OH please please can I go... I wanna be a witch!" said Illyana her eyes resembling those of a puppy.  
"I'll go with her if you want to Pietro." added Lila, desperate to have her mind occupied.  
"Fine... I guess... go, it's ok..." said Pietro.  
"Oh thank you!" said Illyana, hugging him.  
"Come child... I sense much power within you..." said Agatha, taking the child's hand as Lila walked behind them.  
"Agatha means no evil. She might be worried about the child's safety if she needs to run some tests..." said the High Evolutionary.  
"I know... I trust you and your allies..." said Pietro vaguely.  
"Come Pietro... join me for a walk." said the High Evolutionary as he walked towards a hall, going deeper into the ship's remains, instead of towards the caves. Pietro sighed and began to wheel his chair behind him.

The planet recently dubbed Terra did not stand alone in the universe. It was part of a small system of four planets, being Terra the farthest one from their star, a small red one called Kit'ria in the Kree language, the only ones who had bothered to name the system. Prior to the arrival of the humans, Kit'ria held no interest to the Kree or to the Skrull. Mainly because none of the planets were hospitable. Kit'ria 1 was composed of molten lava, constantly raging upon its surface, due to the closeness of the planet to the system's star. Kit'ria 2 was made of gas, there was no solid surface on which to land, except its core, however poisonous gasses around it prevented such event. Kit'ria 3 was populated by savage animals, a jungle world with no place to rest. A difficult place to conquer for it harboured no intelligent life, and the killing of the species within would take ages, not a viable planet. Kit'ria 4 had a breathable atmosphere, but, for some strange reason, the planet was completely deserted. There were no lifeforms of any kind, except very rudimentary forms of vegetation. A barren planet of no interest to anyone. Until the humans came. The High Evolutionary's technology and powers turned the barren wasteland into arable land. He brought terran animals, he discovered hidden rivers. He turned the world into a place where life could blossom. The Skrull noticed first, and then so did the Kree. And they brought war to this once forgotten zone of the Universe. And soaring not far from there, the newborn life of Kit'ria 4, Terra to the humans, attracted yet another being. A lone figure surfed the skies, his course guided by his power, his path taking him directly to Terra. And on a secure cave, deep within the mountains of Terra, a woman screamed.  
"NO! It can't be!" the elderly woman sat in her bed, her blind eyes wide open and sheer fear in her face.  
"Cassandra? What is it? What do you see?" asked a younger woman with bright red hair, sitting next to her bed, confused and surprised at her charge's reaction.  
"The end of all that is..." said Cassandra Web simply, her eyes lost in panic. "This world is as doomed as Earth..."

Soon after their raids, the Kree appropriated the human city for their use. The established their military outpost in it, deployed its forces around it, making it their own. As the team of heroes walked through the streets, cloaked in Strange's invisibility spell, they were surprised to see none of them.  
"Where is everybody?" asked Hellcat  
"Gone perhaps?" added Taskmaster with hope in his voice.  
"No... I sense them... they're ahead, in the park..." said Sunfire, lifting his hand, pointing north.  
"Indeed." added Dr Strange, leading them.  
The city had been built next to a large lake, and near it, they created a park, dubbed Central Park, in homage to New York's, with which it had an uncanny resemblance.  
Once inside the park, hidden behind a rather large hydrangea bush, the heroes watched in silence.  
Hundreds of Kree soldiers stood formed in a large clearing. They were unmoving, except for several squad leaders, shouting orders at their men. At the far end, where all the soldiers were staring at, a small group of Kree captains waited rather anxiously, mumbling among themselves.  
"What is this? What's going on?" asked Hellcat "Are they throwing a parade? If so, can Storm rain on their parade?"  
"Not now Patsy." Said Strange dismissively. "Now's not the time for jokes... look..." he said, pointing up. A rather large ship began descending slowly, near the group of captains, who kept talking.  
"Perhaps the Hoary Hosts of Hoggoth will help us listen what they say..." Dr Strange mumbled as he moved his hands rather quickly. Magickally, the Kree's voices became clear for them, even though they were almost a mile away. The Kree language was also translated by Strange's spell, though it had a weird sound in english.  
"I do not know why they are being sent. We are doing fine against those bloody Skrull" said Tar-Vash looking flustered.  
"I know my liege... but I believe the Supremor is interested in those humans." said another Kree.  
"Bah. We do not need them to fight puny humans..." said Tar- Vash obviously offended.  
The ship touched ground and its hatch opened. After a couple of silent seconds, two Kree descended from the ship. The leading one was tall, robust, and wore a fully green garment, his blue-skinned face barely visible. He carried a large hammer-like weapon. As he descended, the Kree soldiers straightened, absent-mindedly looking forward, with a clear nervous stance. It was obvious, this Kree was feared by the men. A rather small Kree said in a high-pitched voice. "Ronan, Public Accuser of the Kree Empire and Grand Vizier to the Supreme Intelligence." The soldiers saluted him in a way that reminded the heroes of nazi soldiers. Sunfire grunted in his place, a clear expression of hate in his eyes as he watched Ronan intently.  
The second man did not have blue skin. His skin was as pale as a human's. He wore a red and blue costume, with a proud yellow star in his chest, his blonde hair flowed from the top of his costume. He walked casually, in deep contrast to Ronan's walk, who acted with a clear sense of ceremony. The tiny Kree spoke again. "Captain Marvel, Proud Hero of the Imperium. Beloved Warrior. Keeper of the Peace. Powerful Knight." the alien silenced after a furtive look from Ronan. The soldiers response was as opposite as Ronan's walk. They all cheered Captain Marvel, who raised his hand and smiled. He truly was loved by his people. Ronan looked rather angry at the soldiers reaction, but he said nothing. They quickly arrived in front of the Captains, and they all bowed to Ronan.  
"You Excellency... welcome to Kit'ria 4, we are honored by your and Marvel's presence." said Tar-Vash as he bowed.  
"Rise Tar-Vash, the time is short and our duties vast. We cannot linger in this zone forever, the war rages throughout the fringes of our beloved Imperium. We are here because our leader, the Supreme Intelligence, deemed our presence necessary to best those humans you face. Come... appraise us of the situation..." said Ronan, walking towards a tent.  
"Yes your Excellency, we will show you all we know..." said Tar-Vash rising from his bow, looking angrily at Ronan's back.  
The heroes bore silent witness as the Captains and the recently arrived Kree entered the tent. Sunfire, who was a in truth a Skrull in disguise, closed his fist, trying to keep his anger in check and maintain his role.

"Great man. Your father was a great man." said the High Evolutionary as he walked alongside Pietro's wheelchair. They were on a large cave now, with a small lake and a waterfall, and several birds and other creatures roaming wildly in it. The Evolution Chamber, as its creator liked to call it, was a marvel, a small portion of paradise. "He was a great ally as well. We met roughly twenty years ago. He was besieged by grief then. A dear friend of his, Xavier by name if I recall correctly, had recently been assassinated. He wandered through Europe, trying to vanquish threats to humanity. Vowing to help the world the way his friend always said he would... You see, back then there were more menaces than Apocalypse... an alien, Lucifer by name, member of a race called the Arcane, sought to conquer Wundagore mountain for his masters. An alliance was forged between your father, Strange and I... great times, happier times..." mused the High Evolutionary as they walked.  
"Father spoke... often spoke about you and that adventure... he always reminded us that Lucifer's attack was what led him to us." reminisced Pietro.  
"Yes... imagine my surprise as I scanned Magneto's wounds and saw his DNA matched that of my young charges... you were barely five at the time. Bova was sceptical at first, she had taken care of you as a mother would... How is she by the way? She refused to come with us..."  
"Last time I saw Bova... she decided to remain in Wundagore. Even though Apocalypse's son, Holocaust, had all but destroyed the complex where we lived, she decided to stay. Claiming the mountain needed her help... Bless her soul, never have I met a gentler being."  
"Nor you will... Bova was by far my best creation... and tell me, how fares your sister? It was a surprise to see you and not her."  
Pietro's eyes grew sombre, he lowered his head and tried not to give in to grief. "She... she died during Holocaust's attack. She fought him, she died to protect the students... even though many died still... "  
"Hmm... how... curious..." said the High Evolutionary.  
Pietro was surprised at his words. "Curious? What's curious?" he said, bordering on anger.  
"I have a link, not telepathic, no, but a link nonetheless with those who mean something to me. I clearly felt your father's demise the same day of your arrival, it was like a spike through the heart... but... I don't remember ever feeling the same about Wanda... I should have felt her passing..."  
A glimmer of hope rose in Pietro's heart, however it was dashed rather quickly as the High Evolutionary kept talking. "Perhaps the link was severed, or interrupted... those erratic energies within her... that chaos energy that I sensed inside her body, even when he was a child... that chaos energy could have severed the link. It was an strange energy, unpredictable to say the least."  
They remained in silence for a while, walking around the Evolution Chamber, admiring the flora and fauna, until their attention was caught by the arrival of Agatha Harkness, Lila Cheney and Illyana Rasputin.  
"I have finished my tests..." said Agatha approaching them. " It is as I feared, this child possesses great magickal potential. If wrongly harnessed it could become quite dangerous..."  
Pietro did not know how to answer, and he had no time to do it anyway, as a woman of bright red hair appeared running towards them. "My liege! My liege!" she shouted, clearly distressed.  
"Calm down Margali... speak... what troubles you?" said the High Evolutionary calmly.  
Her breath was ragged, but her tone was calmer and her face did not show her previous panic. "It's Cassandra... Madame Web... she claims this planet is doomed! However... she could not give me details... after the warning, she re-entered her trance."  
It took a split-second of comprehension, but the High Evolutionary quickly said "Agatha?"  
"I cannot read the near future as well as Madame Web, Herbert." she said in her old, withered voice. "But I will do my best... I will need your help, Ms Szardos, as well as your daughter's..."  
"I'll summon her immediately." said Margali departing quickly.  
Illyana looked at Agatha. "You need me too, right, Ms Harkness?"  
The elderly woman smiled at the young child. "Yes my dear... come.. let us all go to the Mystic Muster's sanctum..." and she led the way, grabbing Illyana's hand.  
Pietro and Lila looked at each, obviously puzzled. They did not know a thing about magick, and were uncertain how to react. So, they followed her lead.

The Skrull camp was nestled at the bottom of the mountain range. The aliens had deployed guards all over their perimeter, as well as a powerful energy grid around it. It was impossible to sneak inside the camp by foot, and they would be seen if they flew inside.  
"So... we attack them and beat the crap out the little green spuds?" asked Exodus.  
"We are not meant to be seen..." said Nighthawk. "Although I like that plan it's a bit... reckless..." he added.  
"What then?" said Dazzler  
"This is as close as we can get..." said Nighthawk looking down.  
"Which is not very reassuring..." added Tigra.  
"Perhaps we should leave if we cannot get in..." said Exodus.  
"We were chosen for a reason Mr Exodus... if Ms Harkness elected us to come here it is because only us can fullfil this mission..." said Spider-Woman.  
"Would have been easier if she had told us what to do..." mumbled Dazzler.  
"Humans!" said a voice behind them. As one they turned, and they found themselves surrounded by a dozen skrulls, pointing their guns at them. "Skrull Squad! Fire at will! Kill the spies!"  
As one the heroes scattered, avoiding the firing, blocking it with their powers. Spider-Woman created a shield with her webs, which promptly stopped the lasers, as Exodus created a telekinetic shield with the same effect.  
"See? I told you we should strike first." said Exodus smiling.  
"Shut up and fight big guy..." said Dazzler, creating lasers from her hands, attacking the aliens.  
The battle was ridiculously short. The Skrulls were no match for Tigra's speed and ferocity, for Spider-Woman's agility and webs, for Nighthawk's strength and flight, for Exodus' telekinesis or Dazzler's lasers. In seconds the Skrulls were unconscious at their feet.  
"Twelve down... a thousand to go..." said Dazzler looking down. "Perhaps if we beat them all we could ransom their Empire for them..."  
A large laser blast hit the mountain next to them. At once they threw their bodies to the ground, hiding behind some rocks... "They must have seen us from below!" shouted Nighthawk as another blast impacted nearby.  
"They must be using some sort of cannons..." added Tigra, covering her ears.  
"I guess this means the sneaky part of the mission is over..." added Dazzler.  
"Anyone got any ideas?" asked Nighthawk hopefully as another blast hit close.  
"I do..." said Exodus. He moved himself closer to an unconscious Skrull, reaching for his forehead. He closed his eyes and tried hard to concentrate. His telepathy had been greatly diminished by the Madri, and it was blocked by the device which kept his powers in check. But ever since their arrival on Terra, after his grief-driven outburst, Exodus knew his telepathy was not dormant. Slowly his telepathy had been starting to awake again. Using every ounce of concentration he had he searched the alien's mind, as the blasts kept hitting all around them, all over the mountainside.  
"They're gonna bring down the mountain!" shouted Tigra.  
"I got it!" smiled Exodus. "Dazzler! Holograph time!" he said, and he planted an image in her head. "Remember, it's a large being!"  
Dazzler smiled. "Wicked! Nice idea!" she said, receiving his thoughts. She stood up, raising her hands to the sky. "Never tried to do a holograph so big... I'll need your help Paris... " she said, closing her eyes.  
"I'll try to boost your powers with my telepathy... just ... hurry..." he said. He could feel the pressure in his temples, the sweat running down his forehead.  
Dazzler concentrated on the image, using her light powers to create a holograph version of the creature Exodus had discovered. It appeared slowly, like a mirage in a desert, but soon its figure was clear. A gigantic being, dressed in purple, looking like a human giant, appeared, rising his arms.  
"What the hell is that thing?" asked Tigra, looking over the rock they used for protection. The cannon blasts ended as the image appeared before the mountain.  
"Its name is Galactus... it sort of eats planets... the Skrulls are terrified of him..." explained Exodus.  
The reaction was clear. As one, the Skrulls panicked, screaming and running around in fear, dropping their posts, their weapon, running towards the ships. At first, the gathered heroes thought the Skrulls were getting ready to fight the colossal holograph, however it was not the case. They could see the better-dressed Skrull, obviously their leaders, boarding the ships and aiming their course outside the planet. In a matter of minutes, the ships had departed, the High Skrulls leaving the soldier castes below to fend for themselves.  
"I thought the captain was supposed to sink with the ship..." said Nighthawk.  
"No honour among the Skrulls I guess..." added Tigra.  
The soldier Skrulls panicked, running wildly in all directions, leaving the campsite.  
"I wonder if the Kree would react the same way..." mused Spider-Woman.  
And then, a small group of Skrulls appeared, imploring a lone figure to help them, carrying the figure towards the outside of his tent. The heroes could not see who it was. The unknown person spoke with the Skrulls, and then looked up at the fake Galactus. He seemed resolved to help them. He clenched his fists and flame erupted from his every pore. It didn't take long for them to recognize him. Without thinking much, Sunfire rose to the skies, heading to meet Galactus in battle as the Skrull cheered.  
"Shiro?" asked Dazzler confused, sweat running down from her forehead.  
"Sunfire? Isn't he with the other team?" asked Tigra  
"I know I saw him leave with Doc..." added Nighthawk.  
"That guy sure looks like Shiro..." said Dazzler.  
"It is him... " said Exodus simply, his mind almost on the brink of exhaustion.  
"If that's Sunfire... then who's with Doctor Strange's team?" asked Spider-Woman.  
Unsurprisingly, her question went unanswered as Shiro Yoshida, Sunfire, flew closer towards them, rage in his eyes and fury on his fists...

Episode 4: Watchers and Heralds


	4. Chapter 4

**Episode 4: Watchers and Heralds**

Pietro Lensherr could not certainly identify the smell of the Mystic Sanctum. It was a mixture of sandalwood, incense and something else. It was a beautiful smell, which induced to drowsiness. As the incantations of the witches echoed through the vast chamber, Pietro Lensherr's mind wandered once more to his sister. The talk he had with the High Evolutionary had lifted his hopes briefly, only to see them crushed again. Wanda's chaos energy had to be the reason why her death had not been felt by Whyndham. The memories of Wanda arose as he saw the witches before him, performing the strange ritual. Wanda Lensherr had always wanted to be a witch. Her codename partly reflected it. The Scarlet Witch did not know magick, but she certainly wished it so while she was alive. Pietro did his best to stop such thoughts. Wanda was long dead and it served nothing for his mind to dwell on it. He watched intently, trying to understand what the three witches were doing, although he knew that was going to be impossible. Agatha Harkness had lit five candles, each carefully placed above each tip of the five-pointed star drawn in the floor. The star had been drawn with some sort of powder of unknown origin. In the centre of the star, Illyana Rasputin stood, her eyes looking straight at Ms Harkness', who was in deep concentration right in front of her. Deployed behind Illyana were Margali Szardos and her daughter, Jimaine. A small thread of greenish light connected the hands of the sorceresses. Agatha's voice was deep and ominous, sounding far more alive than her usual withered whisper. Her incantation was followed by Margali and Jimaine, whose voices spoke in unison, accompanying Agatha's. "Boe diron adarad, boe diron adarad, boe diron adarad..." they spoke in this long forgotten language. The rough translation of such words was "I must see tomorrow." Pietro watched in silence, his wheelchair flanked by the High Evolutionary and Lila Cheney. It amazed Pietro how easily The High Evolutionary depended on magic. He had always believed men of deep scientific knowledge rejected things like magic. Magic had always seemed to be so... unscientific. Pietro's mind focused once more as the incantation suddenly stopped. For a second the witches held their hands high, the bead of light forming a triangle above Illyana, and then, the light changed its colour, from green to red and then to pure white.  
"Now child... free your mind... leave your body... allow your astral self to manifest... use your power... use your magik..." said Agatha in a singsong voice.  
Illyana tried her best to concentrate. It wasn't easy to imagine her mind leaving her body. She tried hard, remembering Destiny. In fact, doing this was pretty much like when she and the woman led Bishop through the M'Kraan crystal. It felt exactly the same. And Illyana continued, her eyes closed, her mind ready, and she felt lighter than a feather, freer than a bird. And she could feel herself flying through a white disc. Slowly she opened her eyes. She was not in the safety of the sanctum anymore. The smell of sandalwood and incense had dissapeared. She saw a desolate terrain, red skies, and a vast nothingness. She looked at her hands, she had a ghostly appearance. She had seen Dr Strange's astral form, and now she saw herself in the same way. She began to walk through the desolate land. Was this Terra? Was she seeing the future? She did not know what to do, and there was no sign of Agatha.  
"Where am I?" she wondered out loud.  
"Limbo my dear... you are now on Limbo." said a guttural voice behind her.  
Slowly she turned around. She had to stop herself from screaming at the sight before her. A tall one- armed man who looked more like a demon than a man. He had horns, red skin and a long forked tail.  
"The... devil..." she whispered, she could feel pure evil emanating from him.  
"Flatterer..." said the demon/man, he lifted his one hand, moving towards her, clearly trying to grab her.  
"NO!" she screamed at the top of her lungs, and suddenly she was bathed by the white light again. She heard his guttural voice in her head as she left "Soon..." he said, and her heart filled with fear. As the light faded she looked around. She recognized the mountains and the twin moons. She was at last on Terra, on its surface. She watched her hands once more, she was still a ghost, still merely her Astral self. However there was no sign of any problems. If this was the future then it was quite calm. And then she heard it. A powerful noise, something heavy landing closely. And Illyana saw it. A gigantic man-like being, standing proudly near the Kree city.  
And the man spoke, his voice sounding more thunderous than thunder itself. "Good job my herald. This planet will sustain my hunger."  
"I live to serve you my lord." said a small figure, it was a man of silver, or at least, fully garbed in silver. The silver being was aboard a surfing board and hovered near the giant's head.  
"Now Galactus will feed" said the giant, lifting his hands. At his command, a machine whose size defied description began to assemble by itself.  
Illyana felt an ancient terror filing her astral self. Somehow the giant named Galactus was more scary than the demon-man she had met on her way here. However, in spite of her fear, in spite of her young age, Illyana knew she had to stop him. Her astral form began to fly, straight towards Galactus, and she could feel the pull, she could feel her body calling out to her, the spell which matured her powers coming to an end. "No...no... just a bit further.. . I have to... stop... him..." she said, closing her eyes.   
And then she felt it, the smell of sandalwood and incense and burnt candles. She had returned to the Sanctum. She laid on the middle of the star, her eyes half-closed.  
Agatha Harkness hurried next to her and lifted the child in her arms. "Tell me child... what did you see?"  
"Ga... Galactus... Galactus is coming..." she said weakly, her eyes closing, her mind exhausted, and she fell asleep.  
After a few seconds of silence, Pietro exclaimed "What the hell is a Galactus?" with a clear confused look.

"So Doc... what do we do?" asked Hellcat, crouching behind the hydrangea bush in the city's Central Park.  
Doctor Strange paced a few feet away from his team, pondering the best course of action. The Kree captains were still deliberating inside the tent, while the soldiers were resting in their places, which meant they were expecting orders from the captains.  
"Why don't you use that fancy Eye of Aggi- Agaa- Agum- well whatever the name of that bloody thing is..." said Taskmaster.  
A cold look from Strange was his sole answer.  
"Perhaps Stephen, a direct attack is in order. Cripple the captains while we have this unique chance." advised Storm.  
Sunfire remained silent, separated from the others by a slight distance. His flames weren't burning, though his deep hatred for the Kree was erupting inside of him. Unbeknownst to his teammates, he was not Shiro Yoshida. He was, in truth, a Skrull, posing as Sunfire. His original goal was to spy on the humans, find out who they were and what powers they possessed. However, the mere sight of Ronan had inflamed his senses, his rage. This was a golden opportunity to strike at the Public Accuser of the Kree, perhaps he could even defeat their greatest hero, Captain Marvel. "Your spell of invisibility is still active, isn't it?" he spoke while he carefully flicked a switch hidden in his belt.  
"Yes it is, why do you ask?" inquired Dr Strange.  
"No reason." He grinned. From the costume-machine, fire erupted all around him, yet it did no harm to him. Another great work of the Skrull Technology Tetrad, he would have to commend their scientists upon his arrival. In an instant he began to rise, flying towards the tent across the park.   
"Shiro don't!" screamed Storm behind, but her pleads fell on deft ears as Sunfire kept flying forward.

Galactus' image faded from the sky as Dazzler lowered her hands. She felt a small migraine, and almost fainted, but Nighthawk quickly grabbed her, preventing her fall.  
She had timed it just right. As the real Sunfire's blast hit the holograph, she made it disappear. The result was obvious. The Skrulls cheered loudly, proclaiming Sunfire his saviour and hero. Sunfire, however was confused. He remained hovering, looking at the mountain. A bolt of webbing erupted from it, hitting his chest like a rock. "Ouch..." he exclaimed, though it didn't hurt much he felt it sting. As he grabbed the web he looked down, identifying Spider-Woman. He flew in their direction at once. "Greetings... I must assume the fake Galactus was your doing?" said Sunfire, landing, his eyes fixed on Dazzler, who stood by her own means now, though she still rubbed her head.  
"Yes... wait a sec, how do you know its name?" asked Dazzler  
"Skrull told me. You know, at the first sight of the planet- eater, the High Command Skrulls left the planet in a hurry? The scum abandoned their people to save their worthless behinds." He said outraged.   
"Wait a sec dude... what were you doing down there?" asked Nighthawk.  
"They kidnapped me yesterday... what, you didn't notice I was missing?" His flames stopped burning, but his rage was slowly rising.  
"It's... complicated..." said Tigra.  
"Where's Ororo?" asked Sunfire.  
"At the Kree site... with you..." said Exodus standing up, sweating profusely.

The first blast set the tent on fire, making it collapse. Nonetheless, the Skrull Sunfire kept firing at it. The tent exploded from the inside, and the Skrull smiled.  
But his smile soon faded as he saw Captain Marvel, his hands lifted, creating a shield of photonic energy, the cause of the explosion. Behind Marvel's shield, Ronan was unhurt, though the Kree captains were all dead. Mar-vell flew watching around. There was nothing before him. "What madness is this? What dares attack the Kree?" he asked.  
A blast of pure fire was his response. Mar-vell was able to deflect it in the last second, but when he retaliated his blasts met no target. Laughter filled the sky.   
"Die Kree die!" said an awful voice. And the Skrull Sunfire released his blasts once more against the Kree hero.   
Ronan the Accuser watched the fight in silence. Mar-vell was fighting against an unseen enemy, cloaked perhaps by technology. A skrull without a doubt. He restrained himself from fighting, waiting to see how the 'hero' fared. There was no lost love between the two. Ronan had always despised Mar- vell.  
At last, Captain Marvel was able to deflect the attacks no longer, and he fell. Ronan grinned, and he clutched his universal weapon. The hammer-like device in his right hand hummed with energy. He lifted it, his eyes scanning the sky. He could somehow sense the creature, even though he could not see it. Without warning, Ronan released a massive blast from his weapon.  
The Skrull Sunfire shrieked as the harness that simulated Sunfire's powers short-circuited and he fell, unable to remain in the air.   
"Shiro's down!" Ororo exclaimed surprised.  
"No choice now Doc... we gotta go fight them..." said Taskmaster grasping his shield and drawing his sword.  
Doctor Strange sighed and lifted the invisibility spell. "Forward my friends, defend our ally." As he finished his words, the group leapt from behind the hydrangea bush and hurled themselves towards the battle ground.  
Hundreds of Kree soldiers stood in their way, however, the possibility of backing down never rose in their minds. One of their own needed them. Taskmaster and Hellcat quickly hurled themselves to battle the soldiers, using their physical attributes with ease.  
However, Storm had another idea. "Follow me!" she shrieked. As she flew forward she extended her hands, creating a powerful gust of wind, that parted the Kree soldiers, creating a wide path for them to run through.   
"Moises eat your heart out!" cried Hellcat smiling as the four heroes crossed through the path at their topmost speed.  
Ronan the Accuser grinned as he saw the humans racing towards him. His universal weapon hummed, small beads of energy coalescing through its surface, as he prepared himself for battle.   
"Faltinian Flames should prevent the army from interfering!" said Dr Strange, waving his hands. Twin colossal walls of fire erupted, separating them from the army.  
As they arrived before the Kree, they saw both Captain Marvel and Sunfire on the ground, with Ronan standing in the middle, looking at them. "Try your best" said the Accuser with a defiant look.  
"Surrender now Kree and leave this planet!" cried the Taskmaster as he jumped towards Ronan, his sword ready to strike.  
Ronan smiled as a response, releasing a bolt of pure plasma, hitting Taskmaster on his chest, hurling him to the ground.  
"Tom?" asked Hellcat as she saw her friend so easily defeated. Her claws extended and she jumped at Ronan too. A simple swipe of his hand was all he needed to remove her from him. She fell unconscious on the ground due to the strength of Ronan's blow.  
"I wonder what the Supreme Intelligence sees in these humans... they're pathetic beings..." he mused out loud.  
Thunder roared as Storm's eyes turned white. Ronan aimed at ther with his universal weapon, and released a blast.   
Ororo easliy avoided it as she flew, conjuring lightning as she did. Several bolts fell from the sky, striking at Ronan and the ground around him, however, his universal weapon somehow attracted the lightning, absorbing their power, preventing Ronan from coming to harm.  
"Perhaps the Crimson Bands of Cyttorakk will bring us victory!" exclaimed Strange, as he moved his hands again, trapping Ronan within a gigantic red ball, composed of the same mystic bands he once used against the X-Men. "Why have the Kree come to this planet? What do you seek?" asked Strange moving forward.  
"I have no need to explain myself to lesser beings. You will be imprisoned and sent to Hala as per my Emperor's instructions." replied Ronan, unmoving within the Crimson Bands.  
He stirred slowly at first, and then he opened his eyes. Captain Marvel rubbed the back of his head as he sat on the ground. He looked around. Ronan was unmoving, red energy around him, talking with two strangely dressed beings, certainly not Skrulls. However his attention was quickly grabbed by the gigantic wall of fire before him. Behind it he could see the kree soldiers tying to pass through it. "How long was I out?" he asked himself, expecting no reply. He stood up slowly, moving to aid Ronan when he heard it. The Kree soldiers began screaming, terrified. He began to levitate, trying to see better through the flames. He could see them running scared, in all directions, panicked. "What in the name of the Supreme Intelligence is going on?" he asked, and his question was answered when he lifted his eyes. Bigger than life itself, a being was floating, silently observing the park. He, like the soldiers, recognized him at once. A Watcher. A member of an elder race of aliens devoted to watch any and all major cosmic events, yet to never interfere. The coming of a Watcher always meant disaster. Mar-vell clearly remembers the last time he saw one. It was on the planet Ha'lkn near the Sirimian border. He had been helping the Ha'lkn rebuild after a Skrull attack when the Watcher had appeared. Seconds later all of the planet's volcanos erupted at once, a bomb had been planted by the Skrulls, though he didn't know it at the time. As the lava engulfed the planet, and the locals died in agony, the Watcher did nothing. He had rarely worked harder to save people, all under the watch of the silent being. Once the lava stopped and over 90 of the people were dead did the Watcher speak. His words were simple and when he heard them a chill ran down his spine. "My job is done." It was the creepiest phrase he had ever heard. The memory quickly faded as the Kree soldiers kept trying to hide. There was no doubt, Watchers meant disaster and the soldiers were right to panic. And then their panic increased even more. Across the park, right in front of the Watcher, Galactus, the planet devourer had appeared out of nowhere. Mar-Vell could not believe his eyes. He had never met Galactus, but heard of him. If the Watcher was enough to make his people panic, Galactus would be enough to make them soil themselves. However they rose to the occasion, perhaps because Galactus was a threat far more easy to comprhend than the Watcher, or perhaps because there was no place to hide from him, the Soldiers raised their guns at him and fired at once.  
"I'm getting good at this..." said Dazzler, her hands extended towards the light-constructed Galactus.  
"Focus. Don't get cocky." said Sunfire next to her.  
The second team of heroes had arrived, thanks to Exodus' teleportation, and stood on a high roof, watching the scene below, directing the fake Galactus' movements.  
"Who's that other dude?" asked Nighthawk staring at the Watcher.  
"Who knows... perhaps another Kree?" replied Tigra not really caring.  
Exodus sat on the floor. He was on the brink of exhaustation. Teleporting them was easy, yet he could feel his energies all but depleted.  
"It'll be over soon. Don't worry." smiled Spider-Woman reasurringly next to him.  
"Hope so... I feel so... tired..." he tried to smile, but he couldn't.  
"No..." said Ronan, his gaze pasing through his two captors, looking straight at Galactus. "No. I will not let this planet die!" he flexed his muscles, knowing his weapon had absorbed much of the bands' energy and were weaker. "It belongs to the Kree!" he added, tearing the bands apart with sheer strenght and freeing himself. Before Strange could react, Ronan lifted his weapon, aiming at Galactus and fired. The energy it had absorbed, both from Storm's attack and from the crimson bands themselves, was astounding and it hit Galactus fully. Dazzler held her head, as she let out a shriek of pain. SHe could feel the damage done to her light-construct. The effect was clear and immediate. The fake Galactus dissipated into nothingness. Nighthawk once again prevented her from falling.  
"Paris, you're not ok. Stay with Alison. The rest of you... follow me..." said Sunfire commandingly. Hesitating at first, the Defenders followed, as Nighthawk mumbled he was supposed to be leading the squad.  
"You'll be ok?" asked Spider-Woman, lifting her hand to the nearest building.  
"Go already. I'll be fine..." he replied, gently caressing Alison's hair as she laid unconscious next to him. Spider-Woman did not wait and web flew from her wrist to the nearest building, and she swang away.  
Ronan was surprised. He knew his blast was mighty, but he did not expect a being such as Galactus to even feel it, much less dissapear. It took him a few seconds to put two and two together and he shouted "Humans! This is your doing! You think you can deceive the Kree? Deceive me? I am the Public Accuser!" he said, aiming at Storm and Strange "and I deem you a menace! The sentence, execution!" he fired his weapon, causing Storm and Strange to disband to avoid the impact.  
"No! Ronan stop!" Storm was surprised to see the kree hero, Captain Mar-vell flying in front of Ronan, stopping his attack. "The Supremor wants this humans alive. He wants to confer with them. We are not meant to fight them."  
"You forget your place Mar-Vell. I am Public Accuser. My word is law. These humans are too dangerous to be taken to Hala." said Ronan stubbornly "Now move or share their fate." he grinned, clearly hoping he would not move.  
As Mar-Vell and Ronan argued, Storm moved closer to Dr Strange, who waved his hands, creating a recovery spell for his downed allies. Mar-Vell did not move. Instead he pressed a button in his glove. A holographic image rose from it. It was the most repulsing thing the humans had seen. A billion minds amalgamated into a single being. The expresionless face of the Kree Supreme Intelligence looked at Ronan. "You almost fail me again Ronan." said the Intelligence.  
"Supremor these humans are too dangerous and treacherous. They cannot be allowed before your higness." He replied bowing.  
"Silence." the Supreme Intelligence's orders were not questioned. "They made a fool of you, nothing more nor new there. I will assess their behaviour myself." The massive holographic head turned around and clearly addressed "Dr Strange I believe. You lead the local faction of heroes, is that right?"  
"Yes it is." said Strange defiantly, as the Sunfire-led team arrived behind him. Storm looked at Shiro confused, looking at the downed Sunfire, who was still unconscious. Shiro muttered "Skrull" and Ororo nodded. "What is it you seek from us?" asked Strange, not reacting to the arrival of his teammates and the recovery of Hellcat and Taskmaster.  
"I seek to make a bargain with you, a deal as you humans call it. A deal that will prove beneficial to both our races." Said the Intelligence.  
"A deal? With these swine?" asked Ronan disgusted, but a single look from his leader silenced him.  
"Yes... I believe we--" but suddenly the Supreme Intelligence stopped talking. Bubbles rose in its tank. Everyone looked in silence, except for Hellcat who clearly whispered to Nighthawk "Is that the grossest thing you've ever seen or what?", but she stopped after a cold look from Strange.  
"Supremor?" asked Captain Marvel to the holographic image emanating from his wrist. His response didn't come swiftly.  
"I believe our talk will have to wait. You have more pressing matters to attend to. Farewell. I do hope you survive. If so, we will confer again." and then the image faded.  
Ronan looked to the skies as Mar-Vell checked his glove, hitting the switch, though nothing happened.  
"Why did it stop talking?" asked Spider-Woman.  
"What was all that 'hope you survive' crap?" added Hellcat.  
"This planet is doomed." said Ronan, staring still to the skies. "You tried to fool me into believing Galactus was here... but I can sense it. He's truly coming. Galactus heads here. I feel his herald's gaze upon us. Make peace with your gods humans. Death is coming." And he pointed at a small light.  
They all watched in silence as the light grew bigger, and they knew it was not a light, but a being. And soon the being entered the planet's atmosphere and shone brigthly before the assembled. And they could hear an ominous voice in the skies, a voice that defied all description. "Hurry my herald. **I HUNGER!**"

Episode 5: The End of All Things


	5. Chapter 5

**Remnants  
Episode 5: The End of All Things**

"You will all relocate to the lower levels, to the bowels of our ship, were you will be safe. I ask only that you go in peace and order, there is no need for panic, I will take care of things." said the calm deep voice of the High Evolutionary. Twenty thousand human beings listened in silence, ready to follow their saviour's orders. "Ms Harkness, Ms Szardos and her daughter will lead and aid you. Leave your possessions and hurry." The humans slowly began to disperse. And, as they did, Pietro Lensherr asked "You're planning on leaving the planet?"  
"Alas that we could... but bo, our ship sustained great damage during our battle with the Kree. With magic we merged it to the mountains, but without Strange we cannot restore it..."  
"So..., why hide in the bowels of our ship?" said Pietro imitating the High Evolutionary's voice.  
"Because it is more shielded than the normal caves..." responded the master genetist without smiling.  
Lila Cheney watched in silence as the people began retreating. It was astounding the way they had all followed orders without hesitation. Perhaps the witches had something to do... but no... that didn't feel right. This people truly loved the High Evolutionary, they really believed he was a God. Then again, she remembered how they had assembled such enormous cuantity of people. These people were willingly believers of the High Evolutionary's Church of Humanity. However her thoughts were abruptly interrupted as Illyana yanked her hand. "You ok kid?" asked Lila, tilting her head downwards.  
"Yes... but that woman needs you... us..." she said, pointing at the crowd.  
Lila directed her eyes were Illyana pointed. At first she saw nothing out of the ordinary, just people. But then, she saw her. The strange blonde/purple haired woman. She was standing behind her brother's wheelchair, her eyes closed. Lila picked Illyana up and begun to walk towards the strange couple, her heart beating faster as she did. "Are you ok?" she asked, forcing herself hard not to sttuter.  
Elisabeth Braddock opened her eyes, surprised to see the woman in front of her. "Yes... I was... meditating... waiting to go down." she forced a smile.  
"Go sis, starchild and demongirl can take care of me" said Jamie, his black eyes twinkling. Illyana smiled at him and he smiled back.  
"Are ... are you sure?" asked Elisabeth, turning to face him.  
"Yes. I will not harm anyone, nor anyone will harm me, right Starchild?" Jamie's sparkling eyes turned to Lila.  
"Of... of course... if you need to go somewhere, we can take care of him." she replied instantly.  
"C'mon sis... they're like us. We're not alone anymore."  
"Oh, all right. I'll... I'll be right back... just have to... I'll be right back." and Elisabeth Braddock dissapeared in the crowd, running in the opposite as anyone else.  
"I'm Illyana. This is Lila." said Illyana jumping down from Lila's arms and extending her hand.  
"I know. I'm Jamie." replied the man, shaking her hand  
Lila Cheney began to steer the wheelchair, following the crowd. "Your sister...where did she...?"  
"Even if she doesn't want to admit it... she's a hero... she's going to save all of us." replied jamie, sounding like a boy full of pride.

The situation outside was in deep contrast with the calmness inside. Galactus the devourer stood next to the mountain range, slowly assembling his machine with the infinite power of his mind. Kree ships flew around, firing at him, at his machine, but the Silver Surfer, herald to Galactus, did not allow any harm to befell his master, flying between the Kree ships, obliterating them from the skies.  
"He's too powerful! He'll destroy the entire armada!" cried Commander Tar-Vash taking a step backwards  
"Then you'll be destroyed as well, but with pride in your heart!" said Ronan pushing him forward, towards a ship "Fight weasel!"  
Tar-Vash gulped and followed orders, as Ronan the Accuser turned around. "You humans are going to do anything or are you goin to let us all die?"  
Dr Strange furrowed his brow and began to levitate, followed by Storm, Sunfire, Exodus and Nighthawk.  
"I'll join you as well" said Captain Mar-Vell  
"The more the merrier" added Nighthawk smiling  
Tigra watched in silence as her friends left. Spider-Woman was tending to the downed Dazzler and Hellcat and the Taskmaster hugged each other next to the werecat woman. "I hate this... we can't help at all" said the Taskmaster, removing his cowl  
"Face it Tom..., " said Tigra, her eyes fixed on the darkening skies "...against being like these, we are less than nothing."  
"Indeed. I couldn't have put it better." added Ronan, looking up at the heroes.  
The Silver Surfer soared around, downing the last ships, when he found himself wrapped by a red ball of energy.  
"The Crimson Bands of Cytorrak won't hold him for long!" said Dr Strange, appearing within the Surfer's sight range "Be... ready..."  
The mystic bands erupted in a million pieces, as the Surfer broke free "What is this madness? Who dares oppose the wielder of the power cosmic?" he shouted enraged, his eyes blank and furious  
"Just us, humans..." said Exodus releasing a blast of pure telekinetic energy from above, felling him to the ground.  
As he hit the ground, lightning fell from the skies, as photonic energy and atomic flame found his mark at the same time, the combined attack of Storm, Captain Mar-vell and Sunfire.  
For a second, the after-effect of their multiple attack did not allow them to see its results, but Ororo conjured a gust of wind that quickly dissipated the dust. The Silver Surfer stood unharmed as his board floated behind him. "Is that all you've got?" he said as he jumped on his board and fired a blast of the power cosmic to his foes, engaging them in battle.  
"This is impossible..." murmured Hellcat as she watched Ronan running towards the battle against the Surfer. "Even if they beat him they'll never stop the giant in time..."  
"Perhaps we should warn my father..." said Spider-Woman  
"I think he already knows..." Tigra pointed at the mountains, where the High Evolutionary lifted a weird scepter-like device, which pointed to his heart. Energy began to flow from the scepter, filling the High Evolutionary and, impossibly, he began to grow in size and power.  
"What's goin on?" asked the Taskmaster, his hand gripping his sword tighter.  
"He's doing it... he's using his Isotope E..." said Spider-Woman in shock  
"His what? What is he doing?" asked Hellcat turning to see her friend.  
"He's turning into a god..." replied Spider-Woman briefly, tears forming in her eyes, knowing what would happen to her father, regardless of the outcome of the battle.  
"I will crush you, swine!" said Ronan releasing the fury of his universal weapon.  
The Silver Surfer lifted his hand, absorbing the power. "Kree? This planet harbors more than one race?" He asked. Suddenly an explosion made him turn around. A couple of hundreds Skrull appeared as if from outta nowhere and began firing at Galactus machine. "Skrulls too?" pondered the Surfer, while the heroes continued to fire their powers at him, causing him no harm. Galactus turned his eyes to the Skrull and fired a single beam of red energy, which completely destroyed all of the shapechangers.  
Ronan did nothing to hide his smile as the Skrull died.  
Elisabeth Braddock hid behind a rock, meters away from the cave system's entrance. Her powers had not deceived her. She could see Quicksilver, Pietro Maximoff, moving towards the Defenders atop a mountain not far from there. And there, amidst the fight with the Silver Surfer, was Ororo Munroe, the windrider herself. It had been almost twelve years since she last saw them, but there was no mistaking them. She took a deep breath and headed towards Storm and the others.  
Sunfire's anger resurfaced whilst he saw the Skrull die. Without uttering a single word, he began to fly towards Galactus.  
"Shiro!" shouted Storm following him. Strange and Nighthawk followed as well, leaving only Captain Mar-Vell and Ronan to fight the Surfer. Exodus began to follow Storm, but his eyes fell on a young woman running towards the Surfer and his assailants. He landed in front of her, grabbing her arms.  
"What are you doing! This is no place for a human! Go back to the caves!" he said  
"I am not human, I'm a mutant" Betsy's eyes flashed and in an instant she gained access to his mind, finding little resistance "You have great psi-powers, but your telepathy's in diapers... still you'll have to be enough..." she said as Exodus fell on his knees, his eyes blank as she explored his mind and powers.  
The High Evolutionary reached the same height as Galactus at last. The Isotope E, his most prized invention, had evolved him to godhood. With two gigantic steps he placed a hand in front of the flying heroes. "I will deal with this."  
Galactus turned, hearing the Evolutionary's deep voice, and he could not hide his surprise. "Who are you? Galactus is unique, there is only one cursed with the HUNGER!"  
"I am human!" shouted the High Evolutionary, swinging a punch at Galactus face. The giant staggered, each movement they made causing great wind and changing the landscape with each footstep. An epic battle began between the gigantic foes.  
"Master?" said the Surfer, diverting his attention for a second as he saw Galactus fighting the High Evolutionary.  
"Now!" Shouted Elisabeth Braddock. Using her telepathy she forced Ronan and Mar-vell to hit the Surfer in unison, just as she used Exodus' psionic power to channel her own telepathy, entering the Surfer's mind.  
Upon entering she found nothing in the Surfer's mind, nothing but an irresistible urge to serve his master's needs. Suddenly, she could feel a presence, buried deep within the white empty confines of the Surfer's mind. She tapped into Exodus' powers, increasing her probes, releasing his power, trying to grasp the hidden thoughts inside the Surfer's mind. Her plan, at first, had been to shut his mind down, but this feeling, this presence, needed to be brought to the surface. She probed deeper, harder, expanding her powers to the limit, using Exodus' psionic energy to do so. And then, as she at last met the psionic block, the barrier that shielded this hidden personna, a blast of pure white light evicted her from his mind. Silence followed for a second, as the giants fought in the distance and the heroes gathered around the downed Surfer.  
The Surfer was on all fours, and slowly began to raise, his eyes opened harshly, suddenly, and he spoke, but his voice was no longer cold and ominous, "I... I ... I REMEMBER!" he shouted. A tear fell from his eye. "I am ... I'm Norrin... Norrin Rad of Zenn La..." the Surfer looked at his hands, confused, at the giants figthing in the distance, his eyes focusing on Galactus.  
"Zenn La? That planet was destroyed a few years ago..." pondered Mar-vell aloud, as the Defenders joined them as well. Ronan remained impassive, his eyes moving from the Surfer to the giants, to the approaching heroes.  
"I remember! I offered my life to save my planet and he took it... but he still ate Zenn La!" shouted the Surfer, pointing at Galactus.  
"He will pay." He added after a short silence as the flying heroes arrived as well. The Surfer climbed his board and began to fly towards the battling giants.  
"Braddock... is that you?" asked Storm as she descended in front of Exodus, just in time to help him regain his feet.  
"Hi Munroe... long time, no see..." Elisabeth responded, feeling weary and tired after breaking into the Surfer's mind.  
"Traitor!" Ororo shrieked, her eyes crackling with energy  
"Ororo!" said Quicksilver moving forward "She saved us... she used her telepathy on the Surfer... I saw it all"  
Ororo lowered her hand, but remained watching Braddock in silence.  
"What shall we do now?" said Mar-vell, watching the giants fight, who had their hands locked, pushing each other.  
"We wait... and we pray..." said Strange calmly  
"Fools and cowards" said Ronan "I will stop them and save us." he added, moving forward, but an energy wave erupted from the battling giants, felling him, and the Surfer as well.  
Dr Strange conjured the Shield of the Seraphim once more, shielding his allies from the energy wave.  
"I will not budge!" said the High Evolutionary pushing harder than ever, gritting his teeth.  
"Hunger fuels me! I will... I will..." but Galactus fel something he had not felt in a long time. As they fought, and their energies coalesced all around them, he felt his hunger slowly decreasing, his thirst for energy being slowly satiated. So he pressed forward, absorbing the energies released by the High Evolutionary, who slowly began to move backwards.  
"Thus it begins..." said the ominous voice of the Watcher. The gathered heroes and Kree turned to see him, for they had all but forgotten about his presence. "My name is Uatu. I am from a race of beings called the Watchers. I have come to this planet to observe the event unfolding before us. My duty is served." he said simply, dissapearing, and the heroes turned their eyes to the giants once more, as Galactus grew stronger and the High Evolutionary shrinked.  
"Your ... energies... replenishes me... I must have more!" Galactus' eyes flashed as he pressed forward, draining the energies of his foe.  
The Defenders watched in silence as their saviour staggered and shrank, and Galactus power grew more and more.  
"Father!" cried Spider-Woman, but Hellcat stopped her from moving forward..  
It took mere moments, and the High Evolutionary fell, his godlike power spent utterly, and Galactus felt his hunger satiated at last. However, the purple giant felt something he had never, in his long existence, felt before. Alongside his foes energies he managed to absorb somethign more, something he did not know. And he felt the grief and pain of those below. For a reason he did not comprehend, he could feel their grief as his own, their pain. Somehow, those who once were nothing but insects to him, now meant the entire world, and he felt the need to explain himself.  
"He was a strong being. His energies have satisfied my hunger and will last for years. I will not eat this planet."  
"But you did eat Zenn La! You used me!" cried the Silver Surfer, flying towards him and firing the most powerful blast of the power cosmic he could muster.  
Galactus merely raised his hand and stopped the blast "The Power Cosmic cannot be turned against its creator. It is mine to give, as it is mine to take." and he closed his hand and the Silver Surfer stopped in his tracks, energy pouring from him, and Galactus spoke again. "I have done a terrible thing to you, Norrin Rad. You might not believe me, but I am sorry. I hope you find new life in this orb." As as easily as it began, the Silver Surfer's power cosmic abandoned him, and he was a herald no more. He was simply Norrin Rad. Galactus grabbed his former herald in mid-air and gently deposited him on the ground, near the Defenders, as he also lowered the unmoving human body of the High Evolutionary.  
The Defenders moved forward as one, while the X-Men and the Kree remained behind.  
"I have learned much on this journey. A seed has been planted in my heart. Nothing will ever be the same." said Galactus, as Spider-Woman crouched next to her father and hugged him.  
Galactus lifted his hand and his machine disassembled, and he turned to the heroes once more. "I must leave now, but I will not do so alone." He pointed a finger at Ronan and energy enveloped the Kree Accuser. "You are a creature of evil, of pure malice. I will do what I can to reform you as a payback for my sins. You will be my new herald." and Galactus teleported Ronan to his spaceship and began to levitate towards the skies. "Fare thee well Defenders. Shall we never meet again" And so Galactus left with Ronan, and the X-Men and Mar-vell moved closer to the Defenders, where the only sounds were Spider-Woman's sobs. And then, very slowly, the High Evolutionary spoke  
"Do... do not be sad my child... it had to be done... my power... my power fed Galactus... and hopefully... hopefully he will not eat inhabitated planets again. A seed was planted today... for ... alongside my power... Galactus absorbed a shred of my... humanity." And the gathered heroes watched in silence as their saviour died at last. And the X-Men could not stop thinking how they were going to return to Earth now that the High Evolutionary was dead.

Episode 6: Funeral and Farewell


	6. Chapter 6

**Episode 6: Funeral and Farewell**

"Herbert Edgar Whyndham was not my father" the woman known as Jessica Drew did her best not to cry, however her eyes betrayed her and a tear fell slowly down her cheek. She was honored to give the euology, but she had no idea it would've been so difficult. She continued, gathering strenght as she saw the people, the entire human population of Terra. "But he was the closest thing I ever knew to one."  
The X-Men watched in silence, in the back of the Grand Cave, as the funeral unfolded befored them. Not twenty-four hours had passed since the High Evolutionary died, saving Terra from the menace of Galactus, the Devourer of Worlds. "I can't stand this..." said Exodus, turning to leave.  
"Paris, we have to stay" said Storm's calm voice as she placed a hand on his shoulder "That man died to save our lives as well."  
"I don't care." he said removing her hand. "Our saviour died and we haven't cried his death yet." Exodus looked defiantly at Storm's eyes and, after a moment of silence, he left.  
"I'll go after him... try to calm him down a bit..." said Dazzler, leaving after Exodus while bowing her head.  
Storm and Lila Cheney remained alone, watching as Dr Strange took to the podium and began to speak.  
"Are you ok, Ororo?" Lila asked after a while  
"Yes. I am... Exodus' just a brat." She responded, her eyes fixed on Strange.  
"I wasn't talking about him... I'm talking about Pietro. Why isn't he here with us?"  
But Ororo did not reply with words. A faint thunder could be heard, even though they were miles beneath the surface. She knew quite well were Pietro was.

"It's been... how long? Twelve years?" asked Pietro Lensherr.  
"Something like that, yes." smiled Elisabeth Braddock, tying Jamie's hair as he slept on his bed.  
"Your hair was all purple back then." remembered Pietro with a smile  
"Yes well, it's quite difficult to find purple dye here on refugee planet..." replied Betsy playfully. Her tone changed as she asked "Munroe's still mad at me, isn't she?"  
"Can yo blame her?" responded Pietro  
"Not really. And you?" she said, her bright blue eyes finding his as she lifted her head.  
"I am willing to forgive and forget. If there's someone who can understand you... that's me. I would've done anything for Wanda." his voice trembled as he mentioned his dead sister's name.  
Elisabeth left his brother and crouched before Pietro's wheelchair. Without saying a word she kissed him passionately. Pietro Lensherr was surprised and soon found himself responding to the kiss. But then he stopped her. "I've missed you so Pietro..." she whispered.  
"I... I'm with Ororo now...I ... love her." he said, moving his chair backwards.  
"Are you sure?" said Betsy, standing up and grinning.

"Where in Magneto's name is that blasted child?" asked Sunfire out loud as he walked down the now-deserted cavern system. Illyana Rasputin, their seven year old resident mutant child, had decided not to go to the funeral like everyone else. She claimed someone was calling out to her. Shiro Yoshida had volunteered to go in her search as she ran away, and he now regretted that choice. Illyana had walked through the tunnels like she was born in them, walking faster as she went deeper down the mountains, and a moment's distraction was all Shiro needed to loose sight of his quarry. "Illyana!" he shouted without an answer or the thousandth time. The tunnels were darker now. Even his own flame wasn't enough to light the entire cave. he moved carefully, remembering the child did not have any light of her own, and then he heard it. A distinct shout of fear, and he recognized Illyana's voice. He ran, despite the darkness, as fast as he could towards the source of the scream.

"A new age is dawning." Said Dr Strange from his podium "Following the Galactus Incident, we started negotations with the Kree. Apparently the former Kree Commander in charge of their operation on this planet, failed to inform his Supremors about us, about the humans. The Supreme Intelligence of the Kree, their supreme ruler and master, holds a great scientific interest in all races, and he has never encountered humans before. As such, he has offered us to form an alliegeance. We will have control of Terra, as long as we defer to the Kree Empire and ocassionally help them against their enemies, the Skrull. I weighed the options... and accepted. The Kree will return our city to us..." Dr Strange smiled "... so go pack your things. We go back to the surface."  
The answer from the humans didn't make itself wait. Cheers and clapping filled the Grand Cave. "Humanity will live under the stars again." finished Dr Strange over the clamour of his people. Strange moved his hands, dispersing the crowd, which took quite a while to do. As they did, Storm began to walk towards Strange, closely followed by Lila.  
"Illyana?" asked Sunfire as he saw a powerful flame emanating from a cave before him.  
"Shiro? Come... it's ok..." said Illyana's voice, which sounded far calmer than before.  
Shiro Yoshida moved forward slowly and carefully and, when he arrived at the cave's entrance, he couldn't believe his eyes. Illyana was crouched, petting a small purple dragon.  
"Don't touch him... back away kid... do it slowly..." he said, turning his flame off and moving carefully inside.  
"Don't be silly... why would I want to do that?" Illyana replied as the dragon cooed.  
"Illyana... he looks dangerous..." Shiro said moving slowly closer.  
"Of course he does! He is dangerous!" said Illyana Rasputin matter-of-factly "Those two big spider-things attacked me and he went and defended me. He saved my life. He's my friend." she said, petting the dragon and looking at Shiro.  
Sunfire saw the carcasses of the dead spider-like things and then at Illyana. "Be that as it may... we have to go back. So, leave your friend and let's go..." he couldn't even believe his words as he spoke them. In the past, instetad of trying to reason with Illyana, he would've fried the dragon with his power and taken the child back forcefully if necessary.  
Illyana stood up and looked at the dragon "I have to go now..." she said, her eyes sad.  
"Cooooo?" said the dragon looking up.  
"yes, I know... It've been a very short time... " she petted him behind his ear once more and then an idea crossed her head. "Hey! Do you want to come with us?" She said as Shiro shook his head. The dragon looked at Shiro and grinned, accepting with his head the child's generous offer. "Yay! let's go then." Illyana said standing up. The small dragon outstrechted his wings and began to flap them, levitating behind Illyana. "I can keep him, can't I?" She asked Shiro, forcing her eyes to look as puppy-like as possible.  
"Oh... ok I guess." Shiro said, remembering how much pain the child had recently been through  
"Great. Sunfire, this is Lockheed. Lockheed, this is Sunfire, but you can call him Shiro too..." and the dragon moved his small paw forward, and Shiro shook it, not really believing what he was doing.  
"Storm's gonna kill me..." he muttered and then he sighed "Let's go..."

"Ms Munroe... dazzling as ever..." smiled Dr Strange in the middle of crowd, turning at Storm after shaking a human's hand.  
"Dr Strange. We need to talk." said Storm bluntly  
"Say no more..." he lifted his hands and moved them fast, and soon, Storm, Lila and Strange dissapeared in a flash of light, appearing instantly in a room the X-Men had not seen before.  
"By the Goddess!" Ororo shouted surprised as she saw the skies unfolding behind a gigantic window.  
"Sorry for teleporting with no previous indication... welcome to the Defenders Tower." He said proudly. Ororo and Lila looked beyond the window, they clearly were in the middle of the surface city, on the highest tower, on what also seemed the topmost floor. "I thought we could speak more freely here" He added, pointing at a table surrounded by chairs and beckoning his guests to sit.  
"Of... of course..." said Storm, moving towards a chair. After they were seated, Ororo spoke once more "Stephen.. I will get to the point, for I do not like to speak needlessly. We need to go home. We have to go back to Earth."  
"Before you make such drastic choice. Will you not consider remaining here, on Terra? You're heroes, just like my team. Though few are still prejudiced against mutants, they know you fought to save them. It's only a matter of time before they accept you." He replied, placing his hands together before him.  
"It's not about mutant hatred... I...we appreciate the offer... more than you could possible imagine... but there are things we must do on Earth. Friends to bury, and a society to rebuild."  
"I would lie if I said I dodn't want to return to Earth too, but our ship was severely damaged during the initial hostilities and I'm afraid our new allies, the Kree, cannot provide us with a ship big enough for all of us..." Storm's face changed abruptly, while Strange hid a smile, however, Lila Cheney stopped him before he could continue.  
"Dr Strange, How can you trust the Kree?" she asked bluntly  
"I never said I did, child. This pact is the best thing we could have done, but that doesn't mean we blindly trust the Kree. While they're studying us, we will study them, and who knows, perhaps in time we will be able to trust them, but for now... it's trust, but verify..." he said dismissively, and then he cleared his throat and continued "... as I was saying, the Kree cannot provide us with a ship big enough for all of us... but they are more than willing to lend you a ship more than sufficient for your team's needs." he smiled at last, and somehow the sunlight became lighter and clearer.

"I really wanted to kill them all..." said Exodus, sitting atop the mountainside, several feet from the cave entrance, where timid humans began to exit, beginning the journey to their city. "... I really wanted to lash out at all of them..." he added slowly, his eyes focused on the sky above.  
"All of them?" asked Dazzler, grabbing his hand, sitting next to him, her knees close to her chest.  
"The humans... back in the cave... I can't stand being around them...· said Paris Bennet, gently removing his hand from her grip " I can't stop thinking that people like them killed Lord Magneto"  
"But you know these humans have nothing to do with it... don't you?" Alison Blaire said, grabbing his hand once more, while caressing his hair  
"I know... but... I still feel the same way... I mean, they're not that different from the humans on Earth... they still hate us... gods... I just hope we get out of here soon... the sooner the better..." he said, allowing her to touch him, closing his eyes.  
"Ororo's working on it... we'll be out of here soon, you'll se..." she said reasurringly  
"I hope so... I ... I don't want to lose control of myself again..." he said, opening his eyes and looking at her ominously.

"We are going back to Earth. Storm's doing all she can to do so. Will you come with us?" said Pietro Lensherr, approaching the door of Elisabeth Braddock's quarters.  
"And you think high-and-mighty Ms Munroe will allow me to join you?" she said, while packing her things.  
"I am the son of Magneto. If I choose to forgive your... indiscretions... so must she." he said matter-of-factly  
"That sounded far more colder than the Pietro I used to know..." she said looking athim over her shoulder. "I don't know what I'll do yet."  
"Very well. You know my wishes... I hope you will make the right decision." he said, moving his wheelchair away  
And as he left the room, Betsy Braddock grinned broadly.

The hours passed swiftly as the X-Men helped the Defenders to shepherd the people towards the city, helping in any way they could, be it flying the sick and elderly or merely helping with their belongings. It was nightime when they met at last, in the middle of the city's Central Park, where Dr Strange had summoned them.  
"I think he's cute..." said Alison Blaire, petting the small dragon in Illyana's arms  
"Are you sure he is not dangerous?" Storm asked, her arms in her waist, looking at Sunfire  
"He is dangerous... but he seems to obey Illyana." he responded swiftly  
"Lockheed would never hurt me or anyone else... can I keep him? Please?" Illyana said, stressing her tone slightly and repeating the infamous puppy eye manuever.  
"Fine..." Storm said, completely vulnerable to such an attack "...you can keep him" she smiled at the child, who leapt in joy.  
It was not long before Dr Strange and Hellcat walked towards them, as a Kree ship began to descend in front of them.  
"Everything all right?" asked Dr Strange, placing himself next to Storm.  
"Of course." she replied, looking discretely at Pietro, who was playing with Illyana and her dragon.  
The ship landed and its hatch opened, and a familiar face walked dowm from it. Captain Mar-Vell smiled at the gathered heroes. "We meet again my friends. I bring a gift from the Empire to those who aided us."  
"A gift we receive most graciously..." said Dr Strange bowing slightly.  
"You have our eternal gratitude Captain" said Storm, extending her hand at the Kree, who looked at it confused at first, but then remembered and shook it awkwardly  
"Has everyone forgotten none of us know how to fly a spaceship? And a Kree spaceship at that?" murmured Exodus rather loudly.  
"Fear not young mutant" said Mar-Vell "All Kree ships posses a sophisticated Artificial Intelligence that guides the, You need not know how to fly one."  
"And how long will we be at the mercy of this AI?" asked Pietro skeptically  
"Using the coordinates Dr Strange gave me, I've already traced teh road to your planet... it will take about eleven months, give or take"  
Lila Cheney moved slowly away from the team. She could take them all home in the blink of an eye. But she was unsure of her powers. She didn't understand them, she didn't like them. And this time, Remy Lebeau wasn't there with her. His love and her determination not to loose it were intrinsecal to return to Earth last time. But now... without Remy, without his love... she was so unsure, so afraid...  
"Eleven months in the hands of an alien computer?... that doesn't sound too good for me..." said Elisabeth Braddock, pushing her brother's wheelchiar and approaching the team.  
"Braddock? What are you doing here?" said Storm, as the sky clouded itself and thunder broke in the distance.  
Betsy looked up, smiling "Offering you an alternative to reach home... Unless you're still willing to let the past hinder your future."  
"There is nothing wrong with the AI... I myself don't know how to pilot a ship... I'm used to fly on my own..." said Mar-Vell, scratching the back of his head.  
Ororo was not sure what to do, and before she could answer, a voice stopped her.  
"What do you mean, Braddock?" asked Dazzler, her brow furrowed and her eyes fixed on the young woman.  
"Simple. Why don't you leave the same way you arrived here?" she said, as Illyana moved closer to Jamie, showing him her new dragon friend. "Cheney can get us home faster."  
"Us?" repeated Storm angrily  
"I... I don't know if I can... my power is not... reliable..." said Lila turning to see the others  
"Yes. Us. I can use my telepathy to help Lila take us back to Earth. We would return instantly." said Betsy, leaving the wheelchair and moving closer to Lila  
"Can you do that? Really?" Exodus' eyes sparkled with hope.  
"Of course I can. It's easy." smiled Betsy "If Lila's ok with it..."  
"I... Storm?" asked Lila, unsure what to respond  
Ororo looked at her teammates. Her hatred of Braddock had intensified since that fateful last meeting. Her actions in the past made it impossible for Ororo to trust in her. Nonethless, she trusted the Kree AI even less. She looked at her teammates eyes, trying to divine their thoughts. It was obvios Exodus and Dazzler liked Betsy's idea. sunfire seemed more concerned about Illyana and the dragon than about their return home. And Pietro... everytime she tried to find his eyes he avoided her. Suddenly, someone placed a hand on her shoulder.  
"The past is gone Ms Munroe. Is it better to work together, for the future." Ororo turned slightly to see Dr Strange. His words made a lot of sense. It was what they had done with the Kree. She closed her eyes, slowly dispersing the clouds she had subconsciously gathered, and then she spoke. "Very well. We will try Braddock's way" She turned to Mar-Vell "We kindly appreciate the Kree Empire and its magnanimous help... but we will return by our own means..." she said solemnly  
"No harm done." Smiled Mar-Vell "Good journey then..."  
Elisabeth Braddock smiled, standing behind Lila as the others gathered around them.  
"Just promise me one thing Ms Munroe..." said Dr Strange shaking her hand. "Come back for us once you've brought peace to Earth."  
"We will Stephen. You have my word." said Storm warmly  
Betsy placed her hands next to Lila's temples, and both women closed their eyes. Storm joined her teammates as Lila began to shine with a pure white light.  
"See ya! Don't forget to write!" shouted Hellcat, waving her hand  
Betsy guided Lila and her light expanded, covering the mutants, bathing them with its bright radiance. And the white light slowly dispersed, and the mutants were gone.

Storm opened her eyes, she could feel the others with her. Slowly her vision returned, and she realized something.  
"We're not on Earth." she said with a clear tone of 'I knew it..'  
"No... but we're near..." said Sunfire. They all turned and saw through a gigantic glass panel. Earth was right below them. They were on a ship of some sort, orbiting near their home.  
Elisabeth Braddock opened her eyes, and so did Lila "A... presence, for lack of a better term... guided us here."  
"She... it... said we were needed here first" followed Lila  
No sounds were heard inside the ship save their own. "We're needed here? This place seems dead" said Dazzler looking around the weird computers on the walls and the turned off lights.  
"You will be dead soon... muties..." said an ominous voice. They turned at once, away from the window and saw as four people walked out of the shadows. A gigantic, orange monster caught their attention first. A woman, hovering next to him and perpeatully burning was second. A man with a strange device on his chest and whose body seem like taffy was third. And last, the man who spoke slowly became visible before the other three. "We don't want muties here..." he said simply, threatingly  
"I know you... you work with the Human Council... you're Doom!" said Storm, pointing at the previously invisible man  
"Knowing me will avail you nothing mutant! Attack!" and at Doom's command, the others hurled themselves towards the X-Men...

To Be Continued


	7. Chapter 7

**Episode VII : Fantastic Feud**

Humanity had received a most devastating blow. Their leaders, the Human High Council, had been killed by Apocalypse's agents, and London, humanity's most populated city, had been obliterated. But from the ashes of their losses, humanity had slowly began the cicle of healing. Gathered in the city of Berlin, in what used to be the old Parliament building, a new Human High Council had been established. The Council consisted of three men and two women, people dedicated to the human cause and fervient supporters of human supremacy. They all sat in high chairs, one next to the other, and before them stood a young woman, a pilot of the human air force.

"Please state your name before the council" said the man sitting in the middle chair

"Susan Storm, sir, former USAF pilot" said the young woman, her tone clear and strong.

"Do tell us vat occurred..." said another man's voice, his deep German accent

"Rasputin's words of unity were all lies. We knew it from the start." explained Susan Storm, reminescing about what happened a week ago in London. "We gathered as many humans as possible, packed our fleet to the max and got out of England as fast as we could. A couple of ships didn't make it, but the rest of us crossed Europe and arrived safely on Africa. Colonel Bridge is working there, sorting out relocation and helping these people adjust to their new lives in the human camps there."

"This ve already know Ms Storm." said the german once more, his tone bordering on impatience

"What Councilman Zemo wants to say..." said the calm voice of the council's leader "... is we would like to know what happened to Rasputin's ship. We were told there were at least ten thousand humans within, not to mention several former members of this council."

Susan Storm lowered her head slowly for a second, then lifted it back up and talked. "The Rasputin ship was leading our fleet. But, suddenly, as we all hit our top speed, the ship moved too fast. It... sort of when upwards... towards space... we could not communicate with it... we are uncertain what truly happened with it. All we know is it might be somewhere on orbit... or flying in space by now..."

Silence filled the Great Hall of the Parliament building. At last a dark haired councilwoman spoke "Very well Ms Storm. You can leave now..."

Susan Storm bowed her hand slightly and then she left. The Human High Council began debating the news.

"What do you think happened to them, Senator Kelly?" asked the dark haired woman.

"I do not know Ms Haller. We can only hope they are all right out there..." responded the leader of the council.

"Ve are vasting time with this. If zey are gone, zey are gone. Ve have plenty of affairs to take care of." said the german on the far left.

"Please Heinrich, we are all aware of our duties, but wee're talking about ten thousand of our people." said a blond woman next to him.

"Ms Ross is right. We cannot treat this lightly." spoke the last man, sitting on the right. "Robert... this is your call"

Former US Senator, Robert Kelly closed his eyes. He had once decided not to be a part of the Council because of this sort of thing, this sort of choice. He had forged himself a new life, away from London, away from the dealings of the world. But with the death of the Human Council he had to get out of retirement, he had to take a stand. He was instantly named leader of the Council, given his experience with politics and his leadership abilities, in spite of Zemo's wants. After heavy though, Kelly spoke "I think Zemo is right Judge Chalmers. We can't waste time when there are millions out there who depend on our decisions. We do not possess the technology to retrieve Rasputin' ship and those within, nor to contact them. We need to move forward."

Silence followe, and then the door opened and a young blonde woman appeared, closely followed by a young man. "Ms Sofen, Helmut my son... what news you bring from Africa?" said Zemo with a smile.

One week later, high above Earth's atmosphere, Mikhail Rasputin's ship floated peacefully, as war erupted inside. A conflict almost as old as humankind itself... mutants fighting humans.

"Hulk will smash!" cried the orange-skinned creature as it lunged forward.

Storm's eyes turned white and a wind erupted from out of nowhere. However the wind was not enough to stop the berserker beast. "Paris!" she shouted, and the man known as Exodus created a telekinetic bubble, stopping the mad giant.

Sunfire's body bursted to flames once more, and soon found himself fighting the human girl with the same powers.

"Surrender mutants" cried Victor Von Doom, the Invisible Man, his eyes lighting with fury. But, as suddenly as the fight erupted, it stopped, and the fantastic quartet of humans did not move anymore.

"What the f--?" asked DAzzler surprised, her hands lit with photonic energy

"What happened?" asked Sunfire in mid-air, examining his foe.

"I happened." said Elisabeth Braddock, standing behind her brother's wheelchair.

"What did you do?"asked Storm, her tone half in shock, half in rage.

"I stopped them telepathically." she said simply, her hands next to her temples. "Now decide what to do... cause I can't keep this up forever... especially him... he's too strong willed..." she said, looking at Doom

"Tell me what do you see in their minds. Whoe are them and why they are on this ship." commanded Quicksilver, moving his wheelchair forwards.

"Fine, let me see..." the young mutant telepath concentrated, entering her foe's minds. "The girl's name is Gwen Stacy... the orange monster is Dr Bruce Banner... the stretching guy's name is ... Stark, Anthony Stark... and well, you know Doom already... they work for the High Human Council. They were evacuating London... And this ship... its power was too great. They accelerated, but the ship rose to the skies as they did. Soon they crossed Earth's atmosphere, and they were hit by a cosmic sotrm. Cosmic rays permeated through the hull, changing these four humans... But wait... there... there is more people down below... asleep, in stasis tubes... about ten thousand humans!"

"What about the ship? I find this place eerily familiar..." said Sunfire, watching through the window

"It's ... oh..." Betsy stopped, opening her eyes and looking at Illyana, who was also watching out the window, looking down at Earth. "It belongs to Apocalypse." she lied, not wanting to reveal the truth to young Illyana.

"Why are humans in a ship that belongs to Apocalypse?" asked Exodus confused.

"They... commandeered it... and I... I can't..." the eyes of Elisabeth Braddock closed once more, and she tried her best to remain within the huamns'minds, but she found Doom's will to be too much. Her powers lacked training. She couldn't keep up. Controlling four minds as she read them was far more difficult than she had expected. "Aaaah!" she shouted, and as she did she released the four humans.

Lila Cheney hurried to grab her as she collapsed and almost fell.

"Filthy mutants... think you can enter our minds and force us to do as you please? NEVER! The will of Doom is enough to--"

"Shut up Doom." said Gwen Stacy powering down and returning to the floor. She moved towards Quicksilver. "When she entered our minds... I go a glimpse of hers... is it true? Are you Magneto's son?"

"Yes I am. We are all that's left of my father's dream." he said proudly.

Exodus began to sweat, as he kept his telekinetic bubble around the Hulk, who didn't stop pounding on it.

"If they are Magneto's X-Men, then they mean no harm to us." said Gwen Stacy.

"Foolish woman! They are mutants. We cannot trust them." replied Doom

"Put a sock in it Doom." Tony Stark stretched his hand and held it in front of Pietro, who shook it. "Let's make a truce."

"Truce" repeated Quicksilver without smiling.

Storm cleared her throat, and everyone turned to see her. "Perhaps now it would be wise to tell your orange skinned friend to stop?" she pointed at the Hulk and Exodus, who was trying very hard to contain him.

Gwen Stacy moved towards the Hulk. "Let him go..."she said to Exodus, who lifted his tk bubble.

"Hulk free! Hulk out of stupid bubble! Now Hulk will smash puny mutants!" he said with a big smile on his face.

"No Hulk. These mutants are not evil. We won't smash them." said Gwen Stacy in a soothing voice, caressing Hulk's arm.

Hulk scratched his head, opening his mouth to speak and then closing it, clearly confused. In the end he agreed.

"The cosmic rays made his mind a bit ... unbalanced..." explained Tony Stark "He is like a child..."

"If you're going to play nice with the mutants, I'm leaving." said Doom walking away. "But when they turn on you and kill you don't come asking for my help."

"What a creep." said Dazzler crossing her arms.

"We don't like him much either." said Gwen Stacy still patting the Hulk's forearm.

"What about this powers? Is this the Human Council's new way of hunting down mutants?." said Quicksilver

"Not at all" explained Stark. "Two weeks ago we ended up here, as the ship rose forward a cosmic storm hit us. Several of our fellow councilmen died. They were the lucky ones. The four of us... we changed. Our body's forever changed. We... we didn't like it at first. Especially Doom. Thought we were'nt better than mutants now... but we had to control these powers... ten thousand humans depend on us."

"Why are them in stasis?" asked Dazzler

"It wasn't our idea. The agents of Apocalypse put them there, said it would facilitate transport. Luckily for them the tubes are shielded, so they are most likely unchanged." explained Tony Stark

"Besides, while they're on stasis they don't need food or oxygen. There's very little of both." added Gwen Stacy

"Hulk is hungry." said the orange skinned monster pityfully, rubbing his stomach.

"We can't return to Earth because the ship is out of energy. I don't know how they did it, but the ship needs psionic energy to function. Mutant Psionc energy." continued Stark

"So that's why we're here!" shouted Dazzler suddenly. "Don't you see? We were sent here for a reason... these people need us... they need psionic energy... and we have two psychics on our team!"

An eerie silence followed, until Storm spoke again. "Not entirely unplausible. If we can help we will. We also require to return to our planet. We need to work together to do so. Braddock, Paris, do follow Mr Strak to the ship's energy chambers or wherever it is they store energy. Ms Stacy, can you pilot the ship?"

"Sure... but I'll need some help"

"Pietro, Alison, Shiro, and I will help you."

As Storm continued to command her people, Elisabeth Braddock's hands strengthened their grip on her brother's wheelchair. She was reluctant to use her powers in a way that might threaten her health, for fear of leaving Jamie alone and unprotected. But if she didn't help there would be no way they'd be able to return home, and they would die whitout food on this ship. "Elisabeth?" asked Exodus. What wpuld she do? Ten thousand humans required theit help. As she struggled to make a choice, her brother suddenly touched her hand, and her mind calmed. Nodding slightly, she left the chair and followed the others, turning at the last second to look at her brother, and Pietro.

Alone in his chambers, Victor Von Doom turned off the surveillance system. He paced through his room, thinking about the best course of action. Slowly he moved towards his bed and removed a small device from beloow his pillow. As he turned it on, the face of a man wearing a purple mask with a golden headband appeared.

"Councilman Zemo. Von Doom here."

"Speak Doom. I have not much time to spend." replied Baron Heinrich Zemo

"We are going back to Earth"

"How... how is zat possible? You said you couldn't create a portal big enough for everyone with your sorcerous ways."

"I know what I said Councilman. But a team of mutants have appeared out of nowhere. They claim they can power the ship."

"Mutants?" asked Zemo confused

"Magneto's mutants... the so called X-Men. Councilman Zemo... I need you to prepare everything for our return. Give this muties the appropiate greeting."

Zemo remained silent for a moment and then smiled. "Ve will Doom... ve will..."

"Glad to be of service, Councilman. Doom out." And the chief of security of Europe smiled as he hid his device once more.

"This is weird." said Exouds looking at the energy siphoning machine that powered the entire ship. It was a chair, in the middle of a vast, empty room.

"From what info I've been able to gather, a mutant with strong psionic powers sat here. Rasputin most likely given this was his ship. The degree of control had to be astounding. With his thoughts he moved the entire ship, perhaps even telekinetically. I look at this and thank the gods we were able to defeat him. It would take great power to move a ship this size." said Stark

"I remember going up against Rasputin once... he was freakingly strong... you were lucky indeed to defeat him. Hope he stays dead like his master." said Exodus moving towards the chair

"Apocalypse is dead?" asked Stark surprised

"Yes. Lord Magneto killed him, cut him in half. Sacrificed his life and the life of his family to defeat the scum." said Exodus. He felt a sudden rage build within him, but he controlled those thoughts

"We don't have all day to share war stories." said Elisabeth Braddock. "I lack the power, but have the control, you Exodus have the power but lack control. We have to do this together. Sit on the chair, I will guide your mind." added the young mutant. "But first, I need to see all the information you have on how this works, I don't want to overcharge this or undercharge it."

"Certainly. This terminal should show us everything." said Stark moving towards the only computer in the room

A few hours passed, to some they passed rather fast, as they familiarized with the workings of Rasputin's ship. To others the waiting was almost unbearable. Among the latter, Pietro Lensherr tried not to think as he looked down the window, attempting to concentrate on the beauty of Earth.

"I miss Earth..." said young Illyana Rasputin standing next to Pietro's wheelchair, gently petting her dragon

"Me too little one." said Pietro, looking at Ororo's reflection on the window as she talked with Ms Stacy. Behind them he could see Dazzler creating a light show to amuse the Hulk, who clapped and smiled.

"You think he's fine now? You think he's with momma and poppa?" asked Illyana suddenly

"Who?" asked Pietro not thinking, realizing his mistake as soon as he spoke his words.

"Piotr. You think he is in heaven?" said the youngster, her eyes watery as she looked towards the once speedster mutant

"Of course." replied Pietro at once. He lunged forward and hugged the small child, doing his best to prevent his own tears. "Right there with my dad..." he added

"We're ready." said Tony Stark entering the room

Gwen Stacy sat behind the main control board, and the X-Men took the positions she had instructed them to.

"You ready for this?" asked Elisabeth, standing behind the chair, her hands next to Exodus' temples

"No. But it doesn't matter, does it?"

The young mutant once known as Psylocke didn't reply. She moved her hands down a couple of inches. "We have to remove this dampeners. I know they help you maintain control over your powers, but we need all of your--"

"Just do it. I want to get home." he said stopping her.

Psylocke hesitated for a second, but then she removed Exodus power dampeners, which were attached to his head. She placed her slender fingers on his temples and closed her eyes. "Contact" she whispered. And the psionic energy began to flow, from him to her, who canalized it and directed it to the machine.

And slowly, very slowly, Mikhail Rasputin's ship came to life.

"All right! We got power!" said Gwen Stacy with clear happiness on her voice. "Let's go home." and as she placed her hands on the controls, the ship began to move, slowly towards Earth.

To be Continued...


	8. Chapter 8

**Episode VIII: Interludes**

The X-Men fought bravely. Security trolls, infinites, mutants, the hords of Apocalypse were endless, yet the X-Men didn't surrender. Onward and forward they fought for their dream, in epic battle, the last one they'd ever fight. And as the bombs began to fall upon them, one X-Man fought for salvation. Teleporting himself out of harm's way, the mutant known as Nightcrawler tried to stay a step ahead of the bombs, but wherever he appeared he found only death and carnage. And the bombs didn't stop. Suddenly he saw the young Jubilee, running amidst a crowd of Apocalypse's servants, the fight forgotten, tryuing desperately to save their lives in the few instants they had before the impact. Without thinking, Nightcrawler teleported next to her "Grab my hand, fraﾁlein!" and as she did he teleported again. As he kept teleporting blindly, trying to stay ahead of the bombs' wake, a voice sounded clearly in his head. The voice said just one word. "Below." Nightcrawler did not think. He grabbed Jubilee tightly and

teleported downwards, following the voice's commands. As they appeared with a loud bamf and a stench of sulfur and brimstone, Nightcrawler fell to the ground, on the brink of exhaustation.

"Are you ok?" asked Jubilee, sitting up next to her savior

"Been better... ach me bones..." replied the mutant. Slowly sitting up next to her.

"It's dark here blue elf... where did you take us to?"

"I don't know..." he replied, breathing heavily. As they spoke they could hear their words echoed.

"This is the Alley." said the same old withered voiced that commanded Nightcrawler.

Out of instinc, Jubilee fired a display of fireworks towards the unknown voice. The sudden light allowed them to see a robed woman, floating in the air, wearing a crimson cape and hood, who easily stopped Jubilee's attack with a mere wave of her hand. "The Alley..." said the woman, as if she hadn't been interrumpted at all "... is a bomb shelter. We are safe here from the destruction above."

"Mein gott..." said Nightcrawler standing up. "... we have to go back. Magneto and the others..."

"They are dead." said a young quivering voice from the dark. "I'm sorry... but everyone is dead. The bombs destroyed everything. Even him."

"Him who?" replied Jubille, creating more fireworks to illuminate the place. They were inside a vast chamber that seemed to go on forever due to its darkness.

"Apocalypse." said the young woman moving towards the light. She wore a black cape and hood, but her face was not obscured as the woman in red's face was.

"Who are you people?" asked Nightcrawler moving slowly forward.

"My name is Crimsong." said the woman in red. Again her voice sounded old and withered, but with great and terrible power behind it. "This is Tarot. She is one of my children. Mutants I've rescued from Apocalypse and his minions. And you two X-Men... I've chosen to save the two of you so you can join us."

Nightcrawler and Jubilee looked at each other surprised.

"Come now, let me introduce you to the rest of my morlocks." said Crimson, descending at last and as she flickered her fingers the lights turned on, several torches all around the Alley.

"Wait a moment. We cannot go. We need to see if anyone survived the bombs up. We have to go back." said Nightcrawler

"And how do you plan to do that, when you can barely stand on your feet?" said Crimson. "All that teleporting wearied you Kurt Darkholme. You cannot return. And even if you did... Tarot?"

The young mutant removed her hood, revealing a long mane of red hair. Slowly she raised one card in her right hand. They could clearly see the word present written in it. Tarot's eyes flashed and an image flowed from the card and appeared on the wall. There was nothing but destroyed buildings and corpses, and a thick greenish cloud of dust.

"That is what above looks like now. Nothing but radioactive dust. You cannot go back... You can either come with us, or come with us. You are alone now, the X-Men are no more." said Crimson walking towards a tunnel.

Nightcrawler and Jubilee hesitated but they followed the strange women in the end. After a shor walk they arrived on a dining room of some sort, where old rags served as curtains and walls, and the putrid stench of the sewers filled the ambient. There they found six mutants, all of them quite young, all of them discarded by Apocalypse's regime due to what he labeled 'useless mutations'. Tarot made the introudctions as Crimson sat in a big chair that resembled a throne at the head of the table, her face forever hidden in shadow.

"Everyone, this is Nightcrawler and Jubilee, they are X-Men." said Tarot, without waiting for a response, she began introducing her peers. "This is Marrow. Her power allows her to grow bones, sometimes it's uncontrollable." she said, gently poiting with her hand at the girl across the table, with strange bones formations on her forehead and all over her body.

"I can speak for myself card witch. And if you look at me like that again I'll be the last thing you'll every see girl." Marrow sad threatingly, poiting a sharp bone she had been using as a knife at Jubilee, who was obviously grossed out by the young girl. Crimson cleared her throat and Marrow lowered her bone.

"I think it best if we introduce ourselves." said a young indian man with long black hair sitting next to Marrow. "My name is Proudstar, James Proudstar. I have superior strength and heightened senses."

Nightcrawler nodded, he knew James'older brother, and their first and only meeting hadn't been all that nice.

"Catseye I am. Turn into a feline I can, see?" said the youngest girl, sitting next to Jubilee, as she morphed into a rather large pink cat. She jumped down her chair and crossed, moving closer to Proudstar, who began petting her.

"I am Forearm. I'm stronger than Proudstar." said a young man with four arms, helping himself to a turkey leg, or what it seemed like a turkey leg to be more accurate, biting it hard.

"Obviously not the smartest of this bunch." murmured Jubilee to Nightcraler.

"Hairbag rarely talks." said Tarot, pointing at a boy whose body was exactly like a gorilla's, yet his head was still human. He was playing with a piece of bone. "And Meggan doesn't talk at all. We know their names thanks to my cards... I can see the past, present and future, using my tarot cards."

However Kurt Darkholme's attention was directed at the girl called Meggan. She was the ugliest kid he had ever seen. She reminded him of a water demon from a childhood book. She had hair on her shoulders and long blond hair, green skin and webbed hands. While Jubilee was clearly repulsed, Kurt felt something he had not felt in a long time. He felt pity for the young mute girl. For a second she looked up at him, but immediately she lowered her head again, concetrating on her food.

Tarot served a plate to Jubilee and another to Kurt as Crimson spoke again "I rescued all of them from Apocalypse pens... from the Dark Beast's laboratories." Catseye's hair stood up as she head Beast's name, and Hairbag covered his ears. "We have grown into a family." said Crimson, her voice attempting to be warm, but it felt even colder and stranger than before.

"And why did you have to bring them? I don't them." Marrow's eyes were fixed on Jubilee.

"I wish I could have saved all the X-Men..." Crimson ignored Marrow, keeping her eyes fixed on Nightcrawler "... but you were the only one alive with the power to save yourself."

"I thank you for your timely warning. And though I regret my fellow X-Men's deaths I feel they are content, for Apocalypse is dead, and the world will at last be safe." Nightcrawler spoke, though he was uneasy by the situation he had decided to charm the Morlocks until he could truly ascertain what was going on with them.

"Yeah, we're safe, Apocalypse is dead... everyone is dead... what's next?" said Jubilee

"Now you shut your mouth... or better yet, I'll shut it for you." hissed Marrow.

"What's your problem, besides a serious case of b.o.?" replied Jubilee

"I hate pretty mutants... blue is ok, but you... you can't be a mutant if you don't show it...it's even worse than being a human."

"Wonder why Apocalypse thought you were useless." Jubilee said calmly crossing her arms.

Marrow stood up, but Crimson said "We will not fight among ourselves." and her eyes flashed red for a second, and Marrow sat back again.

Nightcrawler cleared his throat loudly and when he had everyone's attention he spoke again. "We are much thankful for your help, but would you mind telling us why your close to remain underground? If you knew the X-Men, our cause... why didn't you join us?" he looked directly

"Cause knowin'don't mean agreein'!" said Marrow

Crimson chose her words carefuly. It was impossible to see her face, but Kurt thought he caught a glimpse of her grinning. "I've had... difficulties with Magneto in the past. It was better to just remain here and survive and begin preparations."

"Preparations?" asked Jubilee

"Yes. I which I could've save the X-Men, because we're going to need all their might in order to stop the future Tarot has seen." said Crimson

As one they turned to see the young french mutant. She lowered her head, placing one more card on the table, as she had been doing for the last minutes. The card had the image of a small baby, with strange energy patterns all around him. In a hushed tone she spoke, as if she was afraid to speak those words for if she did they would come true. "The rebirth of Apocalypse."

Three days later, several thousand miles away...

"I miss Nate..." said the young mutant known as Sonique as she and Soaron, her newly-appointed mentor and sole survivor of Forge's troupe, continued their march. Their small carriage moved forward slowly, and Soaron sighed and replied. "Look kid, he ain't coming back... we have to cut our loses and move forward."

"I know... but I miss him still..." she said, looking at the skies.

For minutes they continued forward without talking, hearing the chirping of birds and the sounds of the wind. The mid-morning sun shining heavily upon them. And then, suddenly, darkness enveloped them and their horse became uneasy. Soaron tightened his grip on the ropes, calming the horse. Immediately he moved his only remaining wing to move the young girl closer to him, protecting her. They could see nothing but dark.

"We will make this offer once..." said a powerful male voice in the dark "...join us or die."

"I... I can't fight... my powers are not reliable." whispered Theresa.

"I count six of them, I can feel their heat... we are clearly outnumbered and outpowered." replied Soaron in the same hushed tone. "Very well, you don't leave us much choice mutant. Now lift this darkness so we can see who you are."

The darkness dissapeared as swiftly as it came. Soaron's assesment was true. A man stood before their carriage, standing next to a blonde girl dressed in white, they could see her absorbing the darkness that had enveloped them. A duo of cat-like girls hissed at them and two men stood at each sides of their carriage. One of them dressed in a black suit, and the other with large goose-like wings and red goggles.

"Who are you? What do you want with us?" asked Soaron

"My name is Sebastian Shaw, and this, my dear professor Lykos, are my Hellions." the man in front of them spoke. "We are recruiting mutants for our little goal."

"And that is...?" asked Sonique almost rolling her eyes.

"Why, dear girl, isn't obvious? We want to take Apocalypse's place as this world's leaders!"

"Apocalypse?" asked Soaron.

"Dead as a doornail." said the man known as Pete Wisdom as he lit a cigarette.

"That means Nate did it..." smiled Sonique

"You have us at a disadvantage." said Soaron. "You clearly outnumber us and we cannot fight. We agree to go with you quietly."

"I so love it when the day starts so good..." said Shaw smiling. "Get down from that contramption and move closer to my dear Ms Darkstar..." he said touching the blonde girl's chin. "She'll take us home... she'll take us back to Hellfire."

And as the team came closer, Darkstar lifted her hands and enveloped them in a darkforce bubble, and it gently rose to the skies and soon they were gone.

Though nestled in the deep congealed continent known as Antartica, a large region possessed warm, tropical weather. Most of the people who lived there had no idea why this ocurred nor they cared. Hidden on the fringes of the Savage Land, a small village of humans and mutants began its reconstruction, for it suffered a devastating blow, orchestrated by the forces of Apocalypse.

"Lift that girder!" shouted Damask, overseeing the reconstruction.

"You are good at giving orders." said a young puerto-rican woman walking towards her.

"I was born to do Dr. Reyes." smiled the former Pale Rider.

"Switchback sent me. She says they're ready to start burying them."

"And?" Damask asked.

"She thought you might wanted to attend the funeral." said the young doctor.

"Why would I want to do that?" replied Damask. She turned her back to Cecilia Reyes and returned to her duties. "There's work to do here. Move that girder to the left!"

Sighing, Dr Cecilia Reyes left Damask alone, who kept shouting orders. A few minutes later she arrived at the recently built cemetery. There, Switchback was ready to give final rest to those fallen in the Pale Riders'attack.

"She didn't want to come."

"I told you." said the young albino girl sighing. "Let's begin shall we?" She looked at the few mutants and humans who had stopped working to bury their fallen friends. She gathered strength and began talking. "We are gathered here today to honor those who departed before us..." but soon she found herself unable to continue. Her eyes focused on the deep red energy coalescing above Cain Marko's casket. Several people gasped surprised as a red gemstone phased from the closed casket upwads. The gemstone hovered above it, glowing brigthly. Without thinking, Switchback raised her hand and touched it slightly. As she did she felt ancient power coursing through her, and her eyes turned red, and she heard a faint voice, resounding in her mind. "Whosoever touches this gem shall possess the power of the Crimson Bands of Cyttorakk! Henceforth, you who hear these words shall become forevermore... a human Juggernaut!"

Not far from Avalon, secure in Antartica's cold embrace, there was a solitaire castle, base of operations of Mystique. The blue skinned woman sat on a throne, impatiently waiting. Her mind was with her son, wondering if the news she had of his and the X-Men's deaths were true. It had been a week since Apocalypse fell. A week since Mystique had abandoned Avalon and begun her plans. An eerie mist entered through an open window. Slowly, the mist coalesced into a visible shape, the shape of a woman. And as she regained corporeal form, Amelia Voght spoke. She wore a blue and red robe, with a small silver D engraved near her heart. "Everything is ready. The sisters await your arrival."

Mystique smiled and stood up. She slowlt walked towards Amelia and touched her shoulder. "Then le us begone child." she spoke with a borrowed voice, sounding much more maternal than usual. Amelia Voght lifted her hands and both women turned to smoke, dissapearing with the wind.

The wind howled around the small island. For generations, Muir Island had been home to the Kinross clan, until their last descendant, Moira Trask, turned it into a sentinel manufacturing plant. Even though Moira, and her husband Bolivar, had died recently, operations continued at Muir. The head of the complex was a retired US Colonel, who had little love for the people who worked below him. He answered the communication and Robert Kelly's face appeared on the monitor.

"Fury here. What do you want?" said the Colonel in a rather angry tone.

"Just the usual Nicholas old friend." said Kelly. "The newly-appointed Council needs a status report."

"Everything's fine here. Campbell and Lang say they have the prime unit ready for you, they're dubbing it Bastion for now." explained Fury, taking a pause to smoke his cigar. "Eberssol is a bit restless, says he can't gain access to a series of subterranean vaults. I told him to drop it, he keeps saying Trask had secrets buried deep in Muir and we might benefit from them. Stupid arrogant s.o.b... I keep telling him Trask's secrets died with him."

"I will speak with Norbert and tell him to chase other goals. There are plenty of things he could use that fixing ability of him." replied Kelly

"And that's pretty much it in this godforsaken place." Said Fury smoking again.

"Good." said Kelly. "Maitain the patrol routes and send an extra dozen sentinels to protect the people in Africa."

"You're the boss now." Fury turned off the communication, just as a green clad woman entered the room.

"Orders from the council?" asked Viper, placing her hands on Fury's shoulders, massaging them.

"The usual crap." he said, putting out his cigar. "Now c'mere..." he said turning around and kissing her roughly, the acrid smell of his cigar bathing her lips.

The cold had left the water. Since the atomic bombs fell all over Manhattan, its waters had never been cold again. In a perpetual state of heat, the irradiated waters bathed the former empire of Apocalypse. Two beings swam through the toxic, irradiated waters. The first was the Queen of Atlan, long cursed with radiation in her body. Namorita was one of the few Atlanteans to survive Apocalypse's attacks. She led her mate, her husband and King of Atlantis, in search for survivors. He had felt a live presence in the water, entering when Apocalypse's world died. He could still feel the radiation as it emanated from this new being.

"Are you sure beloved? Are you sure there is someone from the surface alive down here?" Namorita asked.

"Yes. Radiation is me and I am radiation. I feel a body ravaged by her. I will save him as I've saved your people, dear Namorita" said the tall green-skinned King of Atlan.

They swam in silence for a couple of minutes, looking in every direction, until Namorita spotted their quarry.

"There he is! By Neptune's trident!" she exclaimed. "It's a man! A man made of ice!"

"Ice you say? Perhaps the gods are providing us with the means for our revenge... come my beloved... let's rescue this man of ice..." And the Radioactive Man swam closer to Iceman, grabbing him in his arms and returning to Atlantis.

The smoldering ruins of what once was New York City found relief when a sudden rain erupted above them. The radiation within the city's remains was the highest this planet had ever felt. It would take almost a hundred years for this part of Earth to heal. It was impossible for anything to live here. Yet, a lone figure walked through the remnants of Apocalypse's stronghold. Neal Sharra's mutation protected him from the radiation, and, as he walked, he wondered once more if the prophecy had been correct. "I should have found him already... Ozymandias claimed the Chosen One would be here." he said to himself. The young mutant kept searching through the rubble and debris, until his eyes met his quarry. Among the ruins, among the twisted and broken bones, he saw a small child, sleeping next to a set of skeletons. The child was inside a bubble of some sort, telekinetic energy most likely. Neal walked slowly, trying not to awake him. He crouched and lifted the boy, smiling. "Come with me Chosen One, the time for

your ascension is near." And Neal Sharra resumed his walk, steadily moving towards the East, carrying the sleeping body of Charles Lensherr.


	9. Chapter 9

**Episode IX: Just a touch of... Magik!**

The gigantic vessel moved slowly towards Earth. Piloted by the combined efforts of humans and mutants, the ship returned to the planet below. However, as they got closer, Anthony Stark shouted.

"What's wrong?" asked Storm as Stark used his elastic powers to stretch his hand towards the ship's controls.

"We have to stop! We cannot go home yet!" he tried to take the controls from Gwen Stacy, but she did not allow him to.

"Why? What's wrong?" she asked surprised.

"The flare! There's a solar flare in our path! We can't go through it! The radiation alone would be enough to kill all of us!" he said pointing at a screen monitor.

"Good reason..." mumbled Dazzler

Gwen Stacy didn't hesitate. She began to stop the ship, pressing the buttons. However she soon found out something she did not like. "Crap... it was going on automatic... I wasn't piloting it."

"Are you a retard? How did you not realize this?" shouted Dazzler

"I... I don't know how this happened... I thought I had complete control..." said Stacy as panic began to take over her. She began flipping every key, and Sunfire and Dazzler imitated her. "I can't... I can't turn it off."

"Perhaps... perhaps I can absorb the radiation." mused Sunfire

"How long?" asked Storm "How long before we hit the flare?"

"Seven or eight minutes top." said Stark looking at the screen.

Storm turned to Lila. "Lila listen to me. Ten thousand humans depend on us. No they depend on you. You need to go to where the stasis chambers are and teleport them all to safety. You power works between planets, so go to Terra and then to Earth."

"Ororo ... I ... can't... you know... I ..." she said, shivering in her uncertainty.

"Lila, there is nothing wrong with your powers, only a lack of confidence. I trust you Lila. I know you can do it." said Storm looking in her eyes. "You don't need Braddock to guide you. It's all in you. If you don't do it... no one will."

Slowly, Lila Cheney agreed and Storm spoke again. "Stark take her to where the humans are. She'll save them."

"And what about us?" said Doom, entering the room as the two left.

"I know!" said Gwen Stacy, she flicked a switch. "Ms Braddock... can you hear me?"

There was no response from the intercom. "You have to stop. Stop powering the ship." There was no reply whatsoever.

Doom turned to the door. "Bah! I knew you mutants would be the death of us. I'll make those two stop." But the door closed before him with a metallic swishing sound, stopping him. "What madness is this?" he said turning around.

A voice was heard all over the ship, more ominous than thunder. "You have stolen one of Apocalypse's most prized possessions. You will all die."

"Rasputin!" said Doom in shock, recognizing the voice as the ship increased its speed.

Elisabeth Braddock stopped the energy flow, releasing Exodus's mind. "I know that voice"

Exodus screamed, his eyes wide open and flashing with energy, feeling a deep attack. And then, as suddenly as the attack began it ended, and Exodus fell unconscious, as energy continued to pour from him to the machine.

Betsy run towards the door, but it shut before her, and she began pounding on it with no effect.

"What now?" asked Pietro from his wheelchair

"We're all dead..." said Gwen Stacy sinking in her chair.

"As I said before, I might be able to absorb the radiation." said Sunfire, levitating slightly, his body burning once more.

"Might is not good enough, mutie." said Doom

"I can save us! But... but I can't reach Ms Braddock or Paris..." said Illyana lowering her head.

"What do you mean child?" asked Storm

"I have powers! I can bring us home!" the seven year old said.

"You are too small, too young...you can't do it!" said Pietro

"I can try!" she said frowning her brow.

"Demonchild only help!" shouted Jamie Braddock as loud as he could, smiling broadly.

"You are too young Illyana. The effort might kill you." said Storm

"We're all dead anyway..." said Dazzler

"I can! You'll see!" and then a circle of white light erupted at her feet, and she fell through it.

"Illyana!" shouted Pietro, extending his hand, feeling useless in her chair.

Five unbearable seconds later a light disc appeared below every person in the ship's bridge, and they all fell through them, leaving the ship silent, with only the faint pounding of Elisabeth Braddock echoing through it.

"Where are we?" asked Gwen Stacy, looking around. They found themselves in a cavern of some sort, surprised and confused.

"Hulk confused." said the orange skinned behemont scratching his head.

"Damn muties..." said Doom rising from the ground.

Ororo looked at Pietro, his wheelchair had tipped over. She rushed to his aid, while Sunfire straightned his chair.

"Let me go... I can return to my own chair, I'm not that useless." he said, refusing her help.

Jamie Braddock's wheelchair, however, did not tip over, and he stared blankly at the cavern's ceiling.

"Where are we?" asked Dazzler, holding Lockheed in her arms, who seemed as confused as they were.

"And where is Illyana?" asked Storm, trying not to think about Pietro's rejection.

"That..." said a voice behind them "...is none of your business." a very tall being moved slightly towards them. He was very tall, skin was purple and he had claws and fangs, the only word fit to describe him would be demon. And then they saw several other demons behind him, circling them.

"Who are you? Where are we? Doom demands his questions answered!" said Doom, showing no fear as he adressed the demon.

"You're in Hell. I am your killer." said the demon, and with a gutural scream he hurled himself at Doom, who created a shield of invisible force before him.

As one, the demons attacked. Sunfire, Storm and Dazzler positioned themselves in a circle, protecting Pietro and Jamie, the first wallowing in self-pity, and the latter looking still at the ceiling, humming a tune. Gwen Stacy rose her body on flames, and she attacked the demons with no hesitation, flying around the cavern, followed closely by Lockheed, who imitated her.

"Hulk will smash puny demons!" said the Hulk, hurling himself with all his rage towards the demons.

The battle continued for a few moments, until an ominous voice sounded all over the place. "Now now Sy'm... this isn't Hell exactly... though it might look like it for some." He flicked his fingers and the demons vanished, except for Sy'm, the purple giant facing Doom, who stopped his attack. "Welcome mutants... welcome to my realm, welcome to Limbo."

"Not all of us are mutants." said Doom, his eyes never leaving Sy'm's Hulk scratched his head confused.

Pietro moved his wheelchar past Storm, adressing the one-armed demon in front of them. "Who are you? Where is Illyana?"

"My my my... where are my manners... I forgot to introduce myself. My name is Belasco, absolute ruler of Limbo." he said, making a mock reverence. "And this is my apprentice..." he said as a chain appeared on his hand. He yanked it forcefully and they saw it tethered to a young woman, a teenager, wearing a white cape and hood, with a shiny metal armor underneath, her face was unmistakeable.

"By the Goddess! Illyana!" said Storm surprised.

"We made it." said Tony Stark as he, Lila Cheney, and ten thousand humans in stasis tubes appeared suddenly near the city of Berlin, on a beach.

"O... Ororo was right..." smiled Lila Cheney as she began to faint.

Tony moved fast and prevented her from falling. As he wrapped his arms around he, he kissed her lips passionately. "Thank you."

"You... are ... welcome." she said, loosing conciousness, failing to hear the metallic sound of several sentinels dropping from the skies, surrounding them.

"How is this possible?" asked Pietro in shock

"Limbo, my dear pets, doesn't work like Earth. It touches all of time, and time passes her at the sam time, so, while you waited, in those fateful five seconds you thought you were doomed, young Ms Rasputin lived eight years trapped here." said Belasco, stroking the chain. "She was a wild one, even in those early days but in the end I tamed her and she became my unwilling apprentice."

A bolt of lightning erupted out of nowhere, striking at Belasco's feet. "Release her!" said Storm angrily.

"Make me." smiled Belasco, snapping his fingers and conjuring back the demons he had vanished.

"Great, get him mad." saiz Dazzler, releasing a blast of pure energy at a cluster of demons "...meanwhile PAris and Betsy are dying... or dead for all we know."

"Hulk happy, Hulk can smash demons again!" said simply the Hulk, swinging his fists all around.

"I do not believe we need humans in this melee, regardless how fantastic they are, don't you agree my dear?" said Belasco

Illyana's eyes flashed and three stepping discs cuased Doom, Hulk and Gwen Stacy to dissapear.

"Storm! We lost our backup!" said Sunfire rising slowly, firing a blast at Sy'm.

Ororo placed a hand inside her costume, retrieving a gun, hidden in her belt. "Here Pietro." she said, as she conjured wind to scatter the demons in front of them.

"Where--?" asked Pietro staring at the gun

"Stole it from Doom." she said smiling. He looked up. At last their eyes met again, but when Ororo Munroe saw the emotion in Pietro's eys, all she could feel for him was pity. She erased those thoughts. "Fan out! Bring them down!" she resumed her role as leader.

Sunfire blasted at Sy'm's feet and the demon did his best to avoid the blast, while Dazzler and Pietro kept the demons away from Jamie and Lockheed and Storm flew around the cavern.

"I love a good tussle..." said Belasco. "There's five of them and we happen to need five bloodstones, created from their souls... aren't we lucky? Go my pet... bring them down." he said clutching the chain ever harder. The mystic chain became invisible, and Illyana drew her sword, moving towards the battle. The demons moved aside as she walked towards her former teammates.

"Illyana stop!" said Dazzler, pointing her hands at her. "I don't want to hurt you."

"Don't call me that. My name is Magik." she said her eyes glowing with fury and energy. In less than a second she teleported, appearing behind Dazzler. Without hesitation or mercy she skewered the mutant with her soulsword. Dazzler emited a feeble whimper and fell. Magik turned to see Pietro, who was holding his gun.

"Illyana... stop..." he said. She smiled. He pulled the trigger, yet her sword absorbed the blast and re-channeled it at him. Pietro screamed and then she passed her sword through his heart, and he fell in the same way Dazzler did.

Her eyes turned to Jamie, who didn't say a word, though their eyes connected for a second. Magik almost lost herself in them, but she regained her stance, and stabbed him next.

"Fire can't hurt me for long..." said Sy'm, grabbing Shiro's hands. "Let's see what you do now."

Sunfire was held from his hand, his feet in the air. Without thinking too much he kicked Sy'm's groing, and he released him. "Something like that is ok?" he gloated

"It was excelent." said Magik behind him as she passed her sword through his heart.

Ororo turned to see Sunfire fall. "Shiro!" she shouted, her eyes fixed on Magik's. The teenager smiled and whistled. Lockheed flew at her side at once, rubbing his head against her arm. Ororo frowned, flying towards her. "You will not fell me easily."

"She might not..." said Belasco, conjuring bands out of thin air, binding her as she hovered. "...but with a little help, maybe..." and Magik threw her soulsword at Storm, who fell like the others, feeling a deep pain in her soul.

"Job's almost done my pet..." said Belasco, the chain reappearing in his hand. "Sy'm prepare everything for the ritual."

Sy'm clutched his groin. "Yes... master..." he said in a high-pitched voice unlike his.

"Hopeless... it's hopeless..." said Elisabeth Bradock, sitting against the door. After a couple of seconds she stood up and walked towards Exodus' unconscious form. "I hope I can save you at the very least." she said, entering his mind, using the last dregs os psionic power he possessed to telekinetically shield him. Betsy fell to the ground, defeated, feeling heat all around, the ship was on flames, the radiation of the solar flare bathing it completely, bathing her, and as she felt her life slipping away she cried her brother's name, hoping the X-Men would take care of him, now that she was unable to do it anymore...

Ororo opened her eyes slowly. She was chained to a wall, her hands and legs tightly held against it. She could see a star inside a circle, drawn in the floor, and Belasco sitting on a throne, with Sy'm at one side, and Magik with Lockheed on the other.

"Ah... you wake up at last! Cherish it, for it is the last time you will do so..." said Belasco, putting down a goblet

"Foul Demon! Spawn of Satan! Release us!" said Storm, writhing in her chains, unable to call the elements.

"Flattery won't get you anywhere. You are hardly in a position to make demands, Storm." he replied with a big smile

"What do you intend to do with us?" asked Pietro.

"Now there's a question I've been dying to answer..." said Belasco standing up. "See this five pointed star?" he said, pointing at the floor. "A Bloodstone on each tip will open a portal, a portal to Earth, so me and my army of demons can go and conquer, maim, kill, yadda, yadda, yadda..." He moved closer to his prisoners. "A Bloodstone is created from a soul, a human soul... well, mutant in your case..." He walked towards Magik and grabbed her soulsword. "And guess what is one of the abilities of this wondrous sword?" he said, aiming at them with it.

"Just kill us and be done with it. I hate it when the villains begin monologuing..." Dazzler said rolling her eyes upwards.

"You won't die..." said Belasco ominously. "... once your souls are extricated from your bodies, you will become souless drones, and I will reshape you in my image. You will be my generals, leading my demon army as we conquer Earth first, and then the Universe!" He lifted the sword high as it glowed. The X-Men braced themselves and Belasco pointed the sword at them, laughing madly as it released a bolt of eldritch energy.

However the crimson energy did not harm the mutants, the bolt split, changing its direction suddenly, striking at the chains, releasing the X-Men. At the same time, the sword burned Belasco's hand, who threw it screaming.

Without hesitation or time wasting, Ororo fired a bolt of lightning at Sy'm, followed by a gust of wind as Dazzler and Sunfire shoot Belasco, who fell hard from the combined attack.

"The sword only responds to its true master..." said Illyana, breaking the mystic chain around her neck. "...and that's me, Magik!"

The soulsword hovered and levitated towards Illyana's hand. "Furthermore, the soulsword belongs to the rightful ruler of Limbo, that's why you sought to bind me to you."

"How... how did you break free?" said Belasco, standing up slowly, his eyes revealing the madness within.

"Jamie did it. I don't know how, but when I looked in his eyes, the spell broke..."

"You... you'll pay for this." said the demon.

"Unlikely." responded Magik, lifting her soulsword abover her head. "X-Men, let's go home... he can't hurt us anymore." she added, swinging her sword above her head. The X-Men fell again through white discs, their eyes bathed in white light. And soon they found themselves on Earth at last.

Ororo smiled, feeling Mother Earth's touch on her mind, regaining her rapport with her home planet. And then they saw her, Lila Cheney, alone, unconscious in the sand.

"Lila!" said Storm surprised.

"Something's wrong here..." said Pietro, looking around the deserted beach.

"We're not alone." said Sunfire

Suddenly, a dozen sentinels became visible, as well as Doom and his allies. "Surrender mutants... you are all under arrest."

"Doom!" said Storm, holding Lila , her eyes crackling with lightning and the skies turned dark.

"I won't repeat myself mutant... what... what is that?" he said, poiting at the sky behind the X-Men

"Seriously, you don't think we'll fall for that one..." said Dazzler crossing her arms.

"Maybe we should." said Sunfire looking up.

A massive fireball fell from the sky. A couple of Sentinels tried to stop it, but they were incinerated by the heat as they approached it. With a loud thud, the fireball impacted deep in the Baltic Sea, causing a gigantic wave. Storm lifted her hands, creating winds to deflect the wave as it hit all around them. She found her winds supported by Doom's shield of invisible force. And when the wave fell, and the sea calmed, it happened. A lone figure rose from the crash site, from the middle of the sea. A woman, dressed in a bright green costume, her long purple hair glowing behind her. And Elisabeth Braddock shouted. "Hear me X-Men! No longer am I the woman you knew! I am fire! And life incarnate! Now and forever-- I am Phoenix!" and a fiery bird manifested itself behind her. The bird stretched its wings, enveloping the X-Men, lifting Exodus' unconscious form from the sea, and, in less than second, the Phoenix flapped its wings, flying towards teh south at its topmost speed.

When Doom reacted, Phoenix and the X-Men were far away already. "I'll find you some day muties... and you will all meet your Doom!" he said, closing his fists.

"You gotta recognize something Vic... they got style." added Gwen Stacy

"Indeed." smiled Tony Stark, looking the fiery trail left by the mutant's escape.

To be Continued...!


	10. Chapter 10

**Episode X: Savage Land, Strange Heart**

At last, the only human-mutant community on the face of the Earth had been rebuilt. The inhabitants of Avalon cheerfully celebrated the ocassion, drinking beer and partying. It had been long since any of them had anything to celebrate. As the night grew older, and the residents grew 'happier', their party was rudely interrupted by the image of a gigantic firebird in the sky.

"Oh my..." said Juggernaut surprised, slowly rising from her chair.

"Avalon defense squad... move!" said Damask, running towards the place where the bird landed.

Juggernaut quickly followed her, and so did a young telekinetic man, flying a bit erratically, a man who instantly grew 25 feet high and two humans with guns.

The search party soon found their quarry. Graydon Creed lifted his guns and pointed at the arrivals. "Hold still. You move and you're dead."

Storm held Betsy's body, who had fainted as soon as they landed. Dazzler clutched Exodus and Sunfire had Lila in his arms, while Magik helped Jamie stand up and Pietro remained in the ground, cursing his unmoving legs, with Lockheed hovering before him. They were, by no means, in any condition to fight.

"We do not wish you harm. We are..." said Storm, but she was stopped by Damask's voice's she moved forward through the dense vegetation. "X-Men. Long time no see."

"You!" Ororo's eyes flashed with fury. "You work for Apocalypse!"

"Not anymore. Lower your guns Creed, you too Jones." said Damask waving her hands.

"They are mutants, dangerous mutants." said Creed not lowering his guns.

"So are we..." said Juggernaut moving towards the X-Men, offering Pietro a hand. "Come with us, all lifeforms are welcome here."

Pietro took her hand and she lifted him. "Follow us." said the incredible strong woman, returning to the jungle. Avanlon's defenders followed her, and, one by one, so did the X-Men.

"Hi... I'm Vance... need help?" said the young telekinetic smiling at Magik.

"Sure." she replied

"Demonchild is my friend." said Jamie as Vance Astrovik used his telekinesis to levitate him. The giant helped Dazzler, offering to take Exodus and introducing himself as Scott Wright.

After a short walk, they X-Men got their first glimpse of Avalon.

"X-Men. Welcome to Avalon." said Damask

"This globetrotting has got to stop..." said Dazzler, negating with her head slightly as they watched the village and the strange land behind it.

"The rumours are true then..." said Storm looking intently."...humans and mutants living together. The very embodiment of Magneto's dream."

"True and real... enough to turn someone like me from the dark side..." smiled Damask.

"Virgen Maria... Storm!" said Cecilia Reyes lunging forward. She hugged a very surprised Storm. "It has been too long since Wundagore." said the Doctor. "hey Pietro!" she waved at him

"Cecilia! What... what are you doing here?" Storm asked

"When I left Magneto's school I came here, helped found the place with Destiny and all." said Cecilia smiling

"This isn't the time for a Magneto alumnae reunion." said Pietro. "Three of our number are unconscious and we don't know what truly ails them."

"Don't worry, I'll sort them out." replied Cecilia."Giant-Man, grab all of them and take them to the hospital."

"I'll carry her..." said Sunfire, not allowing to removed Lila from his arms.

Ororo willingly gave Betsy to Giant-Man, who covered the distance to the recently built hospital in seconds. Storm flew behind him, carrying Cecilia in her arms, while Sunfire walked behind them carrying Lila.

"You're Magneto's son, right?" asked Damask

"Yes. Magneto... Magneto was my father." replied Pietro, absent-minded as he watched the departing contingent, unmoving in Juggernaut's arms.

"You think they'll be alright?" asked Dazzler

"Of course. Doc Reyes is the best." replied Vance smiling.

"Come, you must be tired and hungry..." said Juggernaut, leading them towards a table. "And we gotta introduce you guys around, you X-Men are heroes!"

As the morning arrived, both Phoenix and Lila Cheney awakened, her diagnostic was mere exhaustation, after exceeding themselves in the use of their powers. Exodus' condition, however, was different. According to Damask, he had no psionic energy left, it was as if his powers had abandoned him, perhaps siphoned by Rasputin's spell, seemingly utterly spent. Dr Reyes had examined him and physically he was in perfect shape, and it was a matter of time for him to awaken.

The X-Men, at Juggernaut's request, made themselves at home. They were given huts and introduced to everyone, and soon they found themselves scattered amidst Avalon.

"Is it true? You were seven years old yesterday?" asked Vance Astrovik, his enthusiasm clear on his eyes.

"Well..." said Illyana biting an apple and leaning backwards where she sat. "...technically yes, but for me, that yesterday happened eight years ago."

"Weird. How does that feel?" he asked, as if hypnotized at her apple eating ability

"Dunno. I don't remember everything that happened in Limbo... except the spells... all I remember is the magic..." she said, creating a green flame in her hand, and suddenly making it dissapear.

Quicksilver made his way through a pack of small children. They all wanted to see the son of Magneto. He felt quite annoyed, but he managed to smile at them as he moved towards the hospital hut. He knocked and Elisabeth Braddock opened the door.

"You're ok." he smiled

"Yes... Doc gave me the all clear seconds ago. She's checking Lila now, and I asked to look at Jamie just in case, though he seems normal." she said allowing him to enter, positioning behind him and moving his chair forward.

"So... what's with this Phoenix thing?" he asked.

"I wish I knew..." she replied vaguely.

"Beautiful place you've got here." said Sunfire, admiring the village. "How big is that jungle?"

"Don't know... I haven't been here for long, and my time was mostly spent fighting evil dudes and then rebuilding..." said Juggernaut "But I've asked and people say no one ever left the village's limits."

"Why not?" he asked, looking at her

"Frightened I guess. At night, sometimes, weird noised can be heard. Plus we've seen some weird looking lizards. Vance claims they're dinosaurs, so everyone's afraid of the possibility of big dinos..." she said.

"Maybe we should check things out. What if there are demons, or Sentinels, or whatever? I should tell Storm about it." he replied, placing a hand in his chin

"What, you need to run to mama? Scared of going there yourself?" asked Graydon Creed, moving towards them

"Scared? You jest?" said Sunfire frowning

"Let's go then. Let's go explore the jungle." grinned Creed.

"Fine by me..." Shiro replied. "Just don't take too long walking behind." he said, and his body bursted into flames and he flew towards the jungle.

"You know Creed, you can be a royal pain in the ass sometimes..." said Juggernaut, walking behind Sunfire. "Hey Shiro! Wait up!"

Graydon Creed frowned and then followed the mutants.

It wasn't near as cold as she wanted it to be. Ororo Munroe dived once more, the lake's water touching her every pore. She took pleasure in her dive, retarding her return to the surface. She felt at home in the water, as much as she felt at home in the air. Ororo continued to dive and swim, allowing her mind not to think. For the first time in ages, she felt free. This land was perfect in every conceivable way. Unfortunately, Ororo was unaware that two sets of eyes followed her every move, inspecting every inch of her body. She relaxed her senses, swimming to shore and resting, opening her eyes to see the sky above. "Goddess... this... is too perfect for words."

"You're not so bad yourself." said a voice.

Startled, Ororo sat, watching a saber-toothed tiger behind her. "By the Goddess!" she said surprised.

"Zabu won't harm you." the same voice spoke. "Nor will I..." a man with long blonde hair, dressed only with a ragged cloth tied to his waist, jumped down from a tree. "I would never harm anyone so beautiful." he smiled, petting the tiger.

Ororo blushed a little as the man crouched next to his tiger, right in front of her. "I... I'm Ororo. She said, extending her hand."

The man looked at her hand, unsure how to respond. "Ka-Zar is my name, or so they call me here, in the Savage Land. Why are you extending your hand like that?" he asked, watching it curiously.

"It's a greeting." she giggled. She had never giggled before. "Put your hand next to mine. There you go, now we grab hands, and shake." she explained. "How is it you don't know it?" she asked, after his comprehension.

"We do not greet people like that here. We do this..." he said, placing his hand at shoulder level and then moving it in a clockwise arc above his head. Ororo imitated him.

"You're not from Avalon?" she asked, after a few seconds of silence. "The village down the path?"

"No. I... was raised deep in the jungle. But I was born in the outside world. I remember that." he replied, petting Zabu again. "You're from out there too, right?"

"Yes." she answered simply. "Is... is he dangerous?" she asked, looking at Zabu.

Ka-Zar laughed. "Of course, but he won't harm you, I told you... go on... pet him."

Ororo hesitated for a second, and then, very slowly, petted Zabu's head. And then they heard it. A loud noise coming their way. Zabu's ears rose and Ka-Zar extended his limbs, mucho like a gorilla. He said words in a language Storm did not know and Zabu ran fast towards the jungle.

Ka-Zar moved swiftly and kissed Ororo's lips passionately. "We'll meet again." he said and then he ran after Zabu at great speed.

Ororo placed a hand on her lips, looking towards his direction. Her hearth thumped greatly. She had not felt like that in ages.

"Oh... Ms Munroe... are we... are we interrupting?" asked Juggernaut, moving a couple of trees to access. At the sight of Ororo's naked body she looked up. Behind her, Ororo could see Sunfire and Creed, whose eyes were wide open and was grinning.

"No. I was... just... resting." she said, trying hard not to smile, covering her body with her arms, still sitting.

"We are going to explore the jungle a bit." sid Sunfire. "Wanna join us?"

Ororo looked at the jungle, where Ka-Zar had run to. "Yes... we... let's go a bit further inside. " she said, standin up. A bolt of lighning fell from the skies, enveloping her body, and soon her costume appeared as if from out of nowhere.

"Are you ok?" asked Sunfire, placing a hand on her shoulder.

"Yes... just a bit... startled." she replied with a smile. And then the small group began examining the area.

Hours turned into days, and days turned into weeks, and the X-Men relaxed at last, becoming a part of Avalon. Helping its residents in the most varied ways. Exploring the land, keeping dinosaurs at bay, helping with the crops, living as free people.

Paris Bennet sat atop a cliff, watching the sunset, as Dazzler arrived, carrying two coffee mugs.

"Beautiful view." she said, sitting next to him, handing him a mug.

"Yeah... that Magneto statue looks great..." he said, poiting down at the valley. A gigantic statue of Magneto was in the works. A blind human sculptress by the name of Alicia Masters worked on it as they spoke.

"I wasn't talking about it, but sure, it does look great." she said, sipping her coffee. "So... how are you?"

Paris smiled. "Free." he responded simply. "Without... without my powers, I mean, ever since I've lost them... I feel free?"

"Free in what way?" she asked. "You look awfully calm... we all feared you'd go crazy or something..."

"I feel free in every imaginable way. Free of the anger, free of the fight, free... of me." he said.

"Kinda like Shiro... if you're all gonna become zen and start meditating I'm outta here." she said. "You know he started a sort of shaolin cult, teaching humans some ninja meditation crap?"

"I heard." he said, looking at her, not moving his eyes from hers.

µnd he's acting like a bloody monk. You know Juggernaut, the girl-whose-name-has-not-been-revealed? She totally has the hots for him, but he doesn't seem to notice... sometimes men can be so oblivious..." but he placed his hand above her mouth.

"Don't talk." he whispered, his eyes scanning their surrounding.

"Why? you feel anything out there? A dino?" she said, removing his hand.

"No. I just want to kiss you." and he did, sinking his lips into hrs, smiling.

Lila Cheney entered the Braddock's hut, knocking first. Elisabeth was feeding Jamie. The scene was way bizarre. A woman clad in a green costume, feeding a grown man as if he were a baby. However, Lila had gotten used to Jamie's childlike being, and Betsy's mother hen attitude towards him.

"Betsy? Can I come in?" she asked, stepping inside

"You already did." Elisabeth replied smiling.

"Duh... very funny..." Lila said, sitting next to Jamie. "How are you Jamie?"

"Cool. Pineapple good... yummy!" he said. Lila smiled at him

"Yes." said Elisabeth Braddock suddenly.

"Yes what?" asked Lila

"I said yes. I will go to the meeting tonight. Even if the high and mighty Queen Ororo didn't tell me about it. I appreciate your coming here."

"Well, she sent me... she wants you there." said Lila evassively.

"She'd do anything not to talk to me. She hasn't you know... not that I care... but ever since we came here, she hasn't said a single word to me." Betsy continued to feed her brother as she spoke. "Heck, she's even forgiven that Damask woman... and she used to work for Apocalypse."

"You know, you just have to tell me what happened between you two. I'm tired of fearing both of you complaining about each other and using me as a bloody messenger." Lila said crossing her arms

"If I do, you might not talk to me either." she responded darkly

"So... what's the deal with that dragonthing anyway?" asked Vance Astrovik, telekinetically hovering next to Magik, who was petting Lockheed as he played with a rag.

"I told you." she said, repressing a smile. "He's my friend."

"Your friend here tried to eat my costume last night..." said Vance, throwing a reproving look at Lockheed, who replied sticking his tongue out.

"You really believe we're gonna go out and be superheroes, don't you?" asked Magik

"Sure we are, we are going to save the world..." he said beaming

"The world is saved. Apocalypse is dead. My brother died to stop him." she replied coldly

"Oh right... I... I'm sorry." he landed in front of her, trying to catch her eye.

"Don't be. It's history now." she lowered her face, turned around and left, carrying Lockheed in her arms, who loocked back at him and smirked.

Vance looked at the girl as she departed. "Stupid boy... sometimes you seem even more like a child than she does, and you're three years older! Stupid! Stupid! Stupid!" he thought, mentally keeping himself.

"I wholeheartedly agree." said Damask, her amrs crossed, standing behind him.

Vance turned around. "You heard that? You shouldn't read my mind."

"I bet powerless Paris heard it. And I wasn't reading it. I told you to close your bloody mind and you shout in it louder than all of us combined. You truly are stupid." she added, walking past him.

"Why all this closing our mind thing you've been teaching us?" he asked inquisitevely

"I've been talking to Storm..." she said, without stopping. "...regardless of what Quicksilver might say... we don't trust her."

"Her who?" he asked, following her at last.

"Phoenix." Damask answered simply.

Storm looked at herself in the mirror. As she looked inside her eyes she tried hard to gather strength. In the field of battle it had been so easily to lead, almost as if she had been born to do so. But now, now it was different. She needed every ounce of strength she had to deliver her decision, her choice, and hoped they agreed with her. As she lost herself in her mind she closed her eyes, going over her speech, until, suddenly, she felt a pair of arms wrapping her waist, and a strong body pressing itself against her back. She was not startled, in fect she felt relieved. It continued to amaze her how easily he was able to slip past her senses, how he slithered around her unnoticed, and how good it felt to be in his arms.

"We have to stop meeting like this." she whispered, slowly opening her eyes, watching Ka-Zar's reflection in her mirror.

"Why? Don't you like it?" he said, moving her now-long hair aside and kissing her neck.

"Yes... but technically, I'm still with Pietro." she said, grabbing his hands on her waist.

"Pietro never leaves his hut. Pietro doesn't talk to you. Pietro doesn't touch you..."

"Don't start." she said, frowning slightly. "He's wounded, he's grieving."

"And you still love him..." he said, releasing her

"And I love you too..." she said, turning to look at him. "... but if I break up with him now... it might cause more damage."

He kissed her lips, suddenly, surprising her. "I did not come here to argue." he said, grabbing a package hanging from his belt and gave it to her. "A gift, so you'll think of me always, even when you're not in the Savage Land."

Someone knocked the door and Ka-Zar moved swiftly towards the window. "See you beautiful." he smiled and left, as suddenly as he appeared. Storm opened her gift, as they knocked on her door.

"Come in." she said. A beautiful black tiara rested within the package. She smiled and turned to her mirror, placing it in her head. It fitted perfectly.

"I don't think I ever saw you staring at yourself in a mirror." frowned Cecilia Reyes, entering Ororo's hut.

"Times change, people change." she replied simply.

"Pietro came out of his hut? Is that why you're so happy lately?" Cecilia asked.

"Are things ready?" Ororo changed the subject rather abruptly.

"Fine, don't talk about it..." replied Cecilia, throwing her arms up. "... they're waiting for you, let's go."

Ororo breathed in, looking at her reflection one last time. And she left her hut at last. The orange sky bathed the deserted village. Windows and doors were closed, protecting the people from the sunlight, which was a hindrance at this time of night, but, due to Avalon's global positioning, so close to the south Pole, an inevitability. Ororo walked, following Cecilia, as the Avalonians slept soundily. They soon arrived at a clearing, a bit removed from the village, where several people waited for them. Ororo took a second to look at the people gathered around a small fire.

Magik petter Lockheed, absent-mindedly, as Marvel Boy, young Vance Astrovik, stared at her from across the fire. Giant-Man was sitting on the ground, his body enlarged, if he had been standing he would be at least 15 feet high. Ororo did not know why he was perpetually using his power when in company. She had seen him return to normal human size when he entered his hut. Juggernaut's massive arms moved around as she spoke with Sunfire and Lila Cheney, apparently describing her latest fight with a t-rex. Dazzler and Exodus were cuddling next to the fire. Damask was in deep conversation with Graydon Creed and Rick Jones, they were Avalon's sort-of-leaders, prior to the X-Men's arrival. No one was truly in charge in Avalon, there wasn't much need for leadership, but, somehow, since their arrival, the X-Men had become sort of authorities, and Storm, as their leader, the ultimate authority. Queen Ororo as Elisabeth liked to call her. She looked at Phoenix, alone, her arms crossed, her eyes fixed on the weather

witch. Ororo frowned slightly as she saw her, keeping her anger in check. She did not know what angered her more about Braddock. She did not know wether it was her betrayal a decade ago, or her refusal to come clean about her augmented powers and her transformation into Phoenix. What was Phoenix? Where did the costume and the firebird came from? Did she not care? Was she a potential danger to Avalon? Storm thought so. She cleared her mind of such thoughts as she arrived, and as she did, all eyes turned to see her, ending their conversations, awaiting for her words.

"My friends, we are gathered here..." she started

"I told you before, we are NOT getting married." interrupted Dazzler suddenly "At least not yet."

Everyone laughed. It certainly helped Storm to be more distended.

"Since the X-Men's arrival at Camp Avalon, here in the Savage Land, we have been received with open arms, and in a relatively short time we have become a part of it. I believe, the time has come to extend our hands to others. We need to go out into the world, and offer this... heaven... to those who have suffered under apocalypse's mad rampage."

"I do not think that's wise. We have enough people already. Let the world take care of itself." said Graydon Creed

"That is not Avalon's way." said Cecilia Reyes "I've been here since the beginning, and Destiny's mantra was to give refuge to everyone who wanted it."

"Destiny's dead. I say we close our ceommunity, stop people from getting here." added Creed

"It's not so easy." said Sunfire. "There are hundreds of mutants out there who suffered Apocalypse's tortures and worse. The Human High Council is rounding up all humans in Europe, especially now that there is no opposition in what's left of America. We need to save our people.""

"Sure, that's what this place needs, more mutants." added Creed

"Let's make it simple. There is no need to argue." said Juggernaut. "Those in favor of Storm's plan to reach out and bring people who need our help, raise your hands."

Ororo was surprised to see everyone's hands, saved Creed's, rising in the air. She smiled.

"I guess that settles it." smiled Juggernaut.

Storm continued. "Well, I think we should choose a team to go... outside." she remembered Ka-Zar's words about the world. "... to see the state of the world. Accordingly, I'll be on said team."

"Me too. I want to use this new powers for more than just fighting dinos." said Juggernaut.

"You have my assistance Ororo, as well you know." said Sunfire.

"I want to go too." said Marvel Bo, trying hard not to sound too excited.

"Me too." said Magik, looking down, her face showing no real interest.

"I'll stay." said Giant-Man suddenly. "Someone needs to protect the village." As he talked, Dazzler whispered something in Exodus'ear, and, slowly, he nodded, though his eyebrows frowned.

Dazzler spoke next. "I'll go... I kinda miss the globetrotting after all."

"I'm still a novice with my powers, regardless of what happened last time. I think it best if I remained here." said Lila Cheney.

"I do not wish to leave Avalon. I have learned much here. I... I don't want to go out there again." said Damask, mainteining her usual coldness.

"It's settled then." Said Phoenix standing up. "Dr Reys won't leave, she is needed here, and I don't need to read the humans' minds to know they wouldn't join you, and as for myself...I wouldn't certainly want to head into battle with any of you. I'm off to bed."

"Elisabeth wait." said Lila, but she left without turning back.

An odd silence followed her leave. Graydon Creed stood up. "Better make sure the people you bring is as warm as she is." he said, looking at Storm. "As a simple human, I'm going off to bed too."

Rick Jones gave an apprehensive look, and then he left as well.

"I guess this means the meeting is adjourned..." added Dazzler. "Let's all go to bed now, tomorrow we'll settle when and how we'll go out."

And one by one, the circle broke, as everyone heded to their private huts to rest. Ororo watched as Magik walked rather fast, not watching at Marvel Boy, who walked right behind her. Dazzler and Exodus, walked together, grabbing each other's hands, and Juggernaut resumed her storytelling as she walked with Lila and Shiro. Once everyone had left, Ororo turned around, and her eyes met Ka-Zar's, who was sitting in a high branch, concealed by its leaves. he smiled and muttered goodnight. She smiled back and muttered the words as well. She turned and walked away, her mind turned to her passionate encounters with Ka-Zar, and how much she enjoyed them. It wasn't just about the physical relationship, there was also a great thrill to keep his presence hidden from the others. Ka-Zar, for some reason he had not explained, refused to tell Avalon of his existence, and Ororo had grown to respect that. And then, she passed through Pietro's closed cabin, and sighed, it could go on no longer. She knocked his door. There

was no answer. She knocked again. "Pietro. Open. It's me, Ororo again." still no answer. "This has to stop Pietro. It's been a month already. I need to see you, to talk to you." no answer. She frowned. Ororo tried to open the door, but it was locked. She removed one of her hairpins, her mind racing backwards towards her childhood, and she began to pick the lock. It was like riding a bycicle she thought, she had not forgotten how to do it. In seconds, with a feeble click, the door was unlocked. She opened it, entering without doubt. "Pietro?" there was no one inside. She lifted her hand, a small bead of lightning formed in it, enought to lit the dark hut. She saw a paper and grabbed it.

"I need to go. I'm a useless cripple, I have no place among you." she recognized his handwriting, she didn't need to read his signature. "Pietro Lensherr, he who was once Quicksilver." And suddenly, it began to rain.

As the rain broke over the Savage Land, a green portal appeared above the entrance cliff, and seven figures stepped out of it.

"Good job, my queen." said Soaron, his new metallic wings stretching.

"Impressive sight." added Sonique, looking at the growing village next to the waterfall

"I smell meat..." said Feral smiling

"Human meat." continued her sister Thornn.

Pete Wisdom lit a cigarette, safe from the rain thanks to their Black Queen's telekinetic shield. "So, we're gonna do this or we gonna stand here doing sight-seeing?"

"Guide us, fearless leader." said Mimic, stretching his borrowed wings, a mimickry of a mutant called Angel

"You know the plan. We go, we knock mutant unconscious, we recruit them." Soaron made a special stress on the word unconscious, making their intentions clear. He did not want any mutant deaths.

"And the humans?" asked Feral, her tail coiling itself against Mimic's leg.

"Kill them all." said the Black Queen, removing her hood. Long, flowy red hair appeared, as her bright green eyes flashed with energy, and she began to telekinetically hover towards the village, followed by the Hellions, ready to strike at Avalon.

TO BE CONTINUED! OY VEY!


End file.
